Terps Eye Clemson and Georgia Tech In Coming Week
March 28, 2001
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- The University of Maryland men's tennis team (4-7, 0-4 ACC), coming off four straight losses, heads home for the final two home matches of the season this weekend. The men will take on Clemson on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. and face off against Georgia Tech on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. The Terps are looking for their first ACC victory of the season. Both matches will be inside the Maryland Tennis Bubble located adjacent to campus on Rt. 193.
An Inside Look at Clemson
Clemson will take on Maryland as the second match of a three matches in a span of three days. They will go up against Virginia Friday before facing the Terps on Saturday. On Sunday, the nation's 47th-ranked team will travel to Virginia Commonwealth. Clemson is 3-14 on the season with an 0-3 mark in the ACC, good for eighth place in the conference standings. Last year, the Tigers beat the Terps 7-0 at home. They are coached by Chuck Kriese, who is in his 26th year as the head man at Clemson. Last season, the Tigers finished third in the ACC with an 18-17 mark overall. Clemson has faced a nationally ranked opponent in 17 of its matches thus far this season.
Scouting Georgia Tech
The No. 23 Yellow Jackets come into College Park with a 12-4 record overall with a 2-1 mark in conference play. The team is coming off a 7-0 shutout at the hands of Duke and is looking to get back on track. Coach Kenny Thorne, a Georgia Tech alum, is in the middle of his third season with the Yellow Jackets. He boasts an overall record of 26-21, including, 2-0 record against the Terps. Overall, Georgia Tech and Maryland have met 20 times with Tech leading the series 14-6, including last year's 7-0 shutout of the Terps. Prior to the Duke loss, Georgia Tech had won seven straight. They currently stand fourth in the ACC standings. The Yellow Jackets take on Virginia on Saturday before facing Maryland on Sunday.
Terps Struggle Down South
The tennis team comes home for two matches against Clemson March 31 and Georgia Tech April 1 after a four match road trip that saw the Terps drop matches against Florida State (0-7), Duke (0-7), Wake Forest (0-6) and North Carolina (0-7). All four matches were the first nationally ranked opponents Maryland has faced this season. Senior Dan Kenshalo (Gaithersburg, Md.) and sophomore Chris Chiu (Columbia, Md.) teamed up to capture two conference wins in doubles competition. Against Florida State, the pair picked up the victory over Jerrod Owen and Rodrigo Laub of FSU 8-5. Chiu and Kenshalo also notched the doubles win over North Carolina's Ben Aiken and Aron Breziner 9-7. The two have a 5-1 mark overall together, including 2-1 in the ACC.
