Tennis set to open at home this week

ORANGE, Calif. - The Chapman men's and women's tennis teams will open their 2014 seasons on the hard court this week, with the men facing off against Biola on Friday, followed by the women playing Caltech on Saturday.

The men, who finished the 2013 season with a 7-12 record, will have a youthful team featuring seven underclassmen, and only one senior. Senior Troy Akin headlines the young team this season after becoming the first Chapman tennis player to earn All-SCIAC honors when he finished the season with a 6-15 singles record a year ago. Akin is expected to play from the No. 1 position while returners Brett Buford, Hunter Morris and Zach Resnick vie for the following spots.

The Chapman women's team, which finished 2013 with a 5-13 record, will return nine members including seven uperclassmen. Highlighting the returning class are sophomore Andrea Hammer and junior Sophia Duong, who competed last season from the No. 1 and No. 2 positions, respectively. Hammer will look to build on a 6-15 freshman season that included a 2-2 mark in tournament play while Duong seeks to continue her excellent doubles play, where she finished at 9-12 a season ago.

Both the men and women will face daunting schedules in the 2014 season. The men will face seven nationally ranked programs, including five in the SCIAC alone, while the women will face eight ranked teams with four in conference.  Both schedules are highlighted by matches against Claremont-M-S who has the No. 2 ranked men's team and the No. 4 women's team.

The Panthers' men's match against Biola will take place at 2 p.m. on Friday at the Chapman Tennis Courts, while the women will begin their season at the Anaheim Hills Racquet Club Saturday at 2 p.m against Caltech.

by Mike Schwartz
Sports Information Intern

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