The Book: 2002-03 Tennis (M/W)

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Louisiana's home finale is March 25 against New Mexico State

HOUSTON, Texas- Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns men's tennis team will try to end their two-match skid Friday here at the Rice Invitational.

The field consists of No. 34 Rice, No. 45 Clemson and No. 49 Northwestern.

The Cajuns (6-4) face their third ranked opponent of the season. On Jan. 20, UL dropped a 6-1 decision to No. 3 Baylor. #38 Southern Methodist squeaked by the Cajuns 4-3 on Feb. 15.

Senior Jakub Ilowski, ranked No. 62 in the nation, is 7-1 on the season and is riding a seven-match winning streak. Ilowski's seven wins have all come at the No. 1 slot.

Junior Marc Castellana (7-2) is on a five-match winning streak, while Michael Tarkowski (6-4) is on a three-match losing streak after going on a six-match winning streak.

The Rice Invitational will continue tomorrow.

LOUISIANA SI

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Louisiana to honor Jakub Ilowski Tuesday at Senior Day

HOUSTON, Texas – It took five tries, but Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajun tennis team finally knocked off a nationally-ranked opponent, defeating No. 31 Northwestern 5-2 Monday here at Jack Hess Tennis Stadium in the final day of the Rice Invitational.

The win snaps the Cajuns (7-6) four-match losing streak. The win also marks the Cajuns first win against a ranked opponent this season.

Senior and No. 62-ranked Jakub Ilowski extended his winning streak to nine matches with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over No. 97 Thomas Hanus. Ilowski is now 9-1 on the season.

Marc Castellana also notched his ninth win of the season and extended his winning streak to six matches with a 7-5, 6-2 victory over Adam Schaechterle.

Northwestern’s Jackie Jenkins defeated Louisiana’s Ivan Kovalev in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2. The loss was Kovalev’s fifth in a row. Michael Tarkowski’s losing streak is now at six matches after a 6-2, 6-3 loss to Chuck Perrin.

In doubles, Evghenii Corduneanu and Amanjot Singh improved to 9-4 with an 8-5 victory over Josh Axler and Schaechterle. Ilowski and Kovalev snapped their three-match losing streak with an 8-2 win over NU’s Russell Bennett and Hanus.

“This was a great dual match,” said Louisiana head coach Justin McGrath. “Once you get enough chances, you’re going to eventually break through.”

“We stepped it up today and I am extremely proud of these guys.”

On Tuesday, Ragin’ Cajuns senior Jakub Ilowski will be honored during Senior Day ceremonies before the singles matches are set to begin. Louisiana will host Sun Belt Conference foe New Mexico State in a 1:30 p.m. dual match at Cajun Courts.

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MATCH RESULTS
LOUISIANA 5, NO. 31 NORTHWESTERN 2

SINGLES
#1 (62) Jakub Ilowski (UL) def. #97 Thomas Hanus (NU) 6-3, 6-2
#2 Ivan Kovalev (UL) l. to Jackie Jenkins (NU) 6-3, 6-2
#3 Amanjot Singh (UL) def. Josh Axler (NU) 7-6, 6-0
#4 Michael Tarkowski (UL) l. to Chuck Perrin (NU) 6-2, 6-3
#5 Marc Castellana (UL) def. Adam Schaechterle (NU) 7-5, 6-2
#6 Evghenii Corduneanu (UL) def. Ahmed Wahla (NU) 3-6, 6-4, 10-8

DOUBLES
#1 Tarkowski/Castellana (UL) def. Jenkins/Perrin (NU) 8-6
#2 Ilowski/Kovalev (UL) def. Bennett/Hanus (NU) 8-2
#3 Corduneanu/Singh (UL) def. Axler/Schaechterle (NU) 8-5

LOUISIANA SI

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LAFAYETTE — One streak came to end, while another continued Tuesday at Cajun Courts after Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns defeated New Mexico State 6-1 in Sun Belt Conference tennis action.

The Cajuns improved to 8-6, while New Mexico State fell to 7-9.

In doubles, New Mexico State’s Danilo Zivanovic and Mark Roberts defeated Marc Castellana and Michael Tarkowski 8-4.

Louisina's Ivan Kovalev and Jakub Ilowski cruised past Luis Avila and Benjamin Archer-Clowes of NMSU 8-3.

Senior and No. 62-ranked Jakub Ilowski was honored before the match for Senior Day, but New Mexico State’s Mark Roberts spoiled the occasion with a 6-3, 6-3 upset over Ilowski (9-2) to snap Ilowski’s nine-match winning streak.

Louisiana’s Marc Castellana extended his winning streak to eight matches with a 3-6, 6-1, 6-1 victory over Luis Avila. Castellana improved to 10-2 on the season.

“The guys played really well today,” Louisiana coach Justin McGrath said. “Our top guy (Ilowski) lost and the other guys stepped up and pulled it together.”

“Our win on Monday against Northwestern boosted our confidence and we continue to get better as a team.”

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South Louisiana Publishing

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Jakub Ilowski moves up to #48

LAFAYETTE – For the first time in over a year, Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajun tennis team is ranked in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings. The Cajuns are ranked #57

The ranking is the first for the Ragin' Cajuns since February 13, 2002, when Louisiana was ranked #75

“I am very proud of the guys and I think the win over Northwestern propelled us into the rankings,” said Louisiana head coach Justin McGrath.

“It’s great to be ranked #57, but it is how we finish the season that really counts.”

Senior Jakub Ilowski (9-2) moved 14 spots to #48 in this week’s rankings.

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Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajun tennis team returns to action Friday, April 4, when they travel to New Orleans to face Conference USA rival Tulane in a 4 p.m. dual match at Goldring Tennis Stadium.

LOUISIANA SI

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Louisiana's Marc Castellana improves to 11-2

NEW ORLEANS-Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns men's tennis team lost to their fifth nationally-ranked opponent Friday after a 6-1 loss to No. 16 Tulane here at Goldring Tennis Stadium.

The Cajuns drop to 8-7, while the Green Wave improves to 15-5.

Senior and No. 48-ranked Jakub Ilowski lost his second straight match with a straight-set 6-1, 6-3 loss to Victor Romero. Ilowski drops to 9-3 overall.

Junior Marc Castellana defeated Mattias Westerberg 7-6, 2-6, 10-7. With the win, Castellana improved to 11-2 and extended his winning streak to nine matches. The streak ties Ilowski's season-high nine-match winning streak set earlier this season.

Tulane's Hannu Piiroinen snapped Evghenii Corduneanu's four-match winning streak with a 6-7, 7-5, 10-3 victory. Corduneanu falls to 9-6 on the season.

In doubles, Ilowski and Ivan Kovalev extended their winning streak to three matches with an 8-2 victory over Jorge Lievano and Piiroinen. Castellana and Michael Tarkowski lost their fourth match in their last five after an 8-4 loss to No. 6-ranked Michael Kogan and Romero.

Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns men's tennis team returns to action Wednesday, April 9 when they return to New Orleans to face Sun Belt Conference rival UNO in a 2 p.m. dual match.

LOUISIANA SI

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MATCH RESULTS
#16 Tulane 6, #66 Louisiana-Lafayette
Singles
#1 No. 48 Jakub Ilowski l. to Victor Romero (TU) 6-1, 6-3
#2 Amanjot Singh l. to No. 23 Michael Kogan (TU) 7-6, 6-1
#3 Ivan Kovalev l. to Dmitriy Koch (TU) 6-2, 6-4
#4 Marc Castellana def. Mattias Westerberg (TU) 7-6, 2-6, 10-7
#5 Michael Tarkowski l. to Jorge Lievano (TU) 7-6, 7-6
#6 Evghenii Corduneanu l. to Hannu Piiroinen (TU) 6-7, 7-5, 10-3

Doubles
#1 Castellana/Tarkowski (UL) l. to No. 6 Kogan/Romero (TU) 8-4
#2 Singh/Corduneanu (UL) l. to Vasiljevic/Koch (TU) 8-6
#3 Kovalev/Ilowski (UL) def. Lievano/Piiroinen (TU) 8-2

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Louisiana's Marc Castellana is 10-3 on the season

NEW ORLEANS – Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajun tennis team faces the No. 74 ranked New Orleans Privateers Wednesday in a Sun Belt Conference showdown in a 2 p.m. dual match here in New Orleans.

The No. 66-ranked Cajuns enter Wednesday’s match with an 8-7 overall record, while the Privateers enter with a 14-4 record. UNO has won their last four matches and 11 of their last 13.

On Friday, Louisiana lost to No. 16 Tulane 6-1 at Goldring Tennis Stadium. Michael Tarkowski was the lone bright spot for the Cajuns, picking up a 7-6, 7-6 victory over Tulane’s Jorge Lievano. UL Lafayette’s Marc Castellana saw his eight-match winning streak come to end after a 6-7, 7-5, 10-3 loss to Mattias Westerberg.

Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns women’s tennis team will also face the UNO Privateers Wednesday afternoon.

The Privateers (14-3) have lost two of their last three matches, while the Cajuns (0-11) are still looking for that elusive first win of the season.

On Saturday, Louisiana dropped a heartbreaking 4-3 loss to Louisiana Tech in Ruston. Robin Singh, Fernanda Kompatsher and Thais Bortoletto all notched victories for the Cajuns. Bortoletto’s victory was her first as a Cajun.

After Wednesday’s showdown, the men will have two more matches and the women will have one more match before the Sun Belt Conference Tournament.

LOUISIANA SI

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Today is a big day for the Cajun Netters. UL still ranking in the Top 75 at #63 are playing #64 ranked UNO. The Sunbelt is looking very strong in Men's tennis this year with 3 teams in the top 75. USA leads the pack ranked #57, the UL at #63 and UNO at #64.

Today is a big day and a chance for UL to move up in the rankings and garuentee themselves a spot in the NCAA tournament. Our next 2 matches are easily winnable vs SLU and a very poor Colorado team. Then we have a showdown with USA for the conference championship. The match today starts at 2:00 pm CST in New Orleans.

Good luck to the Cajun Netters.

The source of the story

DELPHI
BucktownCajun (RAGINDAVE)

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UL’s Jakub Ilowski drops third-straight match

NEW ORLEANS-Four matches went to a third set, but Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns men’s tennis team couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity to prevail in a 4-3 loss to New Orleans here Wednesday afternoon.

No. 63 Louisiana fell to 8-8, while the No. 64-ranked Privateers improve to 15-4. The Cajuns are now 1-6 this season against nationally-ranked opponents. All seven matches were played on the road.

Senior and No. 77-ranked Jakub Ilowski, once ranked as high as No. 48 in the ITA Rankings, dropped his third consecutive match and fell to 9-4 after a 1-6, 7-5, 6-2 loss to No. 62 Viktor Loven. The loss was Ilowski’s first to a ranked opponent this season.

Amanjot Singh bounced back from Friday’s loss to Tulane’s Michael Kogan with a 4-6, 6-1, 6-1 victory over UNO’s Pierre Ros-Barbier. Singh improves to 8-6.

Junior Michael Tarkowski (9-7) extended his winning streak to three matches, easing past Julien De La Maitrie 6-0, 7-6.

In doubles, Ilowski and Ivan Kovalev won their fourth match in-a-row with an 8-2 victory over De La Maitrie and Saif Ali of UNO. Ilowski/Kovalev improve to 8-8, reaching the .500 plateau for the first time this season, while Marc Castellana and Tarkowski dip below the .500 mark (7-8) for the first time this season. Castellana and Tarkowski lost 8-5 to Michael Chkroun and Loven.

Evghenii Corduneanu and Singh notched their 11th win of the season after an 8-5 victory over Anders Oding and Ros-Barbier.

Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns men’s tennis team returns to action Saturday when they travel to Houston to face Colorado in a 1:30 p.m. dual match held at Rice University. The match, originally scheduled for March 17th in Boulder, CO, was postponed due to a snow storm.

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MATCH RESULTS
#64 New Orleans 4, #63 Louisiana 3
SINGLES
#1 #77 Jakub Ilowski (UL) l. to #62 Viktor Loven (UNO) 1-6, 7-5, 6-2
#2 Ivan Kovalev (UL) l. to #95 Michael Chkroun (UNO) 6-2, 6-3
#3 Amanjot Singh (UL) def. Pierre Ros-Barbier (UNO) 4-6, 6-1, 6-1
#4 Michael Tarkowski (UL) def. Julien De La Maitrie (UNO) 6-0, 7-6
#5 Marc Castellana (UL) l. to Saif Ali (UNO) 2-6, 6-1, 6-4
#6 Evghenii Corduneanu (UL) l. to Anders Oding (UNO) 2-6, 6-3, 6-1

DOUBLES
#1 Castellana/Tarkowski (UL) l. to Chkroun/Loven (UNO) 8-5
#2 Ilowski/Kovalev (UL) def. De La Maitrie/Ali (UNO) 8-2
#3 Corduneanu/Singh (UL) def. Oding/Ros-Barbier (UNO) 8-5

LOUISIANA SI

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UL has lost six of their last eight matches

HOUSTON, Texas – After a snowstorm canceled their original meeting, Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns men’s tennis team will try to get back on track against the University of Colorado here Saturday in a 1 p.m. dual match at Jack Hess Tennis Stadium on the campus of Rice University.

The first meeting was originally scheduled for March 17 in Boulder, Colo., but was postponed due to a major snowstorm.

Louisiana-Lafayette (8-8) has lost their last two matches and six of their last eight. The Cajuns are 3-8 on the road this season. Colorado, on the other hand, is on a roll.

The Buffaloes have won their last three matches.

Senior and No. 77-ranked Jakub Ilowski (9-4) has lost three consecutive matches, two of them in straight sets.

Junior Michael Tarkowski (9-7) began the season 6-1 and then suffered a six-match losing streak before reeling off three straight wins.

In doubles, Ilowski and Ivan Kovalev have won four straight matches to even their record at 8-8.

Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns men’s tennis team will travel to Hammond on Tuesday to face Southeastern Louisiana in a 2 p.m. dual match at the Southeastern Tennis Complex.

LOUISIANA SI

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MOBILE, Ala. – After two straight eighth place finishes at the Sun Belt conference Tennis Tournament, Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns men’s tennis team will look to win its first Sun Belt Conference title since 1992 when they take on New Mexico State in the first round of the SBC Championship Friday at 3 p.m. here at the Mobile Tennis Center.

Louisiana enters the 26th Annual Sun Belt Championships as the No. 3 seed. Last season, Louisiana-Lafayette was the No. 6 seed when they knocked off the No. 3 seed, New Mexico State, 4-3

The Cajuns (9-10), ranked No. 71 in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s rankings, has not faired well on the road this season, posting a 4-10 record away from Acadiana. In their last road match of the season, Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns were shut down by No. 64 South Alabama 7-0 in Mobile.

The Cajuns will also look to reach double-digit wins for the first time since 2000, when Louisiana finished 15-7. That season’s squad finished second in the Sun Belt Championships.

In their last meeting, then-No. 57 Louisiana cruised past the Aggies 6-1 at Cajun Courts. Senior Jakub Ilowski (11-5) saw his nine-match winning streak come to an end, after a straight-set 6-3, 6-3 loss to Mark Roberts. Since beginning the season 9-1, No. 83-ranked Ilowski has dropped four of his last six matches, including two straight to a nationally-ranked opponent.

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26th Annual Sun Belt Conference Men’s Tennis Tournament

April 25-27, 2003 (Mobile, Ala.)
(7) Arkansas-Little Rock vs. (2) New Orleans, Friday 10 a.m. (MTC)
(6) New Mexico State vs. (3) Louisiana, Friday 3 p.m. (MTC)
(8) Western Kentucky vs. (1) South Alabama, Friday 1 p.m. (USA)
(5) Denver vs. (4) Middle Tennessee, Friday 10 a.m. (USA)

LOUISIANA SI

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It took exactly one year for the Lady Cajuns of Louisiana tennis team to win a match. On April 13, 2002, UL defeated Southern Miss 4-0 in Hattiesburg, Miss. Then, the losing streak began. The Cajuns endured a 15-match losing streak before getting back in the win column. The Lady Cajuns knocked off Southern University 4-1 on April 13 on this year.

Louisiana (1-12) enters the 19th Annual Sun Belt Conference Tournament as the No .11 seed. The Cajuns will face No. 6 Florida International (5-12). UL's lone win is the fewest wins for the program since 1988 when then-USL won only two matches (2-10). The Golden Panthers hold a 3-0 edge in the series with the Lady Cajuns.

In last season’s SBC Championships, Louisiana dropped both matches, a 4-1 decision to Arkansas-Little Rock in the first round and a 4-2 decision to North Texas in the Ninth Place match.

Louisiana’s Lady Cajuns will face the FIU Golden Panthers at 8 a.m. on Friday at the Mobile Tennis Center.

19th Annual Sun Belt Conference Women’s Tennis Tournament
April 25-27, 2003 (Mobile, Ala.)
(10) Western Kentucky vs. (7) New Mexico State, Friday 8 a.m. (MTC)
10/7 winner plays (2) Denver, Friday 3 p.m. (MTC)
(6) Florida International vs. (11) Louisiana, Friday 8 a.m. (MTC)
6/11 winner plays (3) Middle Tennessee, Friday 3 p.m. (MTC)
(9) North Texas vs. (8) Arkansas State, Friday 8 a.m. (MTC)
9/8 winner plays (1) South Alabama, Friday 4 p.m. (USA)
(5) Arkansas-Little Rock vs. (4) New Orleans, Friday 3 p.m. (MTC)

LOUISIANA SI