July 7, 2009

PHILADELPHIA - The Saint Joseph's men's tennis team welcomed a new head coach this season as Ian Crookenden took the reins of the program and led the Hawks to an eighth-place finish at the Atlantic 10 Championship. SJU counted on steady veteran leadership and an infusion of young talent to lay the foundation for the strengthening of the program in the coming years.

Senior Pat Adams led the way in singles play, notching a record of 12-9 on the year. He finished at 8-7 in the top flight and was also 3-1 when playing in the second slot. He was named the Atlantic 10 Performer of the Week on February 9 after sweeping his opponents from Saint Peter's and La Salle and was named the team's Most Outstanding Player. For the second season in a row he partnered with Matt Prusack for doubles, where the pair was 6-10.

Phil Bayliss returned from shoulder surgery to play in the number-two singles slot as a senior, where he won five matches. He was also paired up with Michael Stauble in the top doubles flight, and the two combined for a 7-11 record against the opposition's best duos. Bayliss was named to the Atlantic 10 Academic All-Conference team for his efforts both on the court and in the classroom.

Stauble held down the fort at number three singles, notching five wins, including a victory against Richmond that gave the Hawks the match by a 4-3 score. Prusack was the primary player at number five, also counting among his five triumphs a match-winning point against Drexel.

A pair of rookies made a huge impact for Saint Joseph's as Jeff Kessler and Peter Cognetti made their presence felt at fourth and sixth singles, respectively. Kessler was second on the team in matches completed with 23, winning 11 of those. He tied Adams for the most wins in a singles flight with eight in the number-four slot, including a 3-1 mark during the squad's Spring Break trip through Florida. He was named the A-10 Rookie of the Week on February 9.

Cognetti was 7-11 in the sixth flight, playing 22 matches over the course of the season. He was even more impressive than Kessler in Florida, posting a perfect 4-0 record for the week and garnering Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week honors himself on March 16.

The freshman duo made an even bigger impact on the doubles side, where they played predominantly in the second flight. The pair finished 7-5 on the season, helping the Hawks win more and more crucial doubles points as the season went on.

Fellow freshman Kevin Aquino provided depth for the Hawks, winning three singles matches over the course of the season. He also partnered with Cognetti for a pair of doubles victories early in the year.

The Hawks were without a number of familiar faces as Nick Tuxen, Lucho Perez-Abreu and Will Pearson played in a combined three matches due to injuries. Seniors Brian Costello and Brent Kahl helped plug the gaps caused by those losses.

Under new leadership, the Saint Joseph's men's tennis team struggled early as injuries decimated the squad, but soon developed into a formidable opponent for any foe on the schedule. With the graduation of the squad's top two singles players, the valuable experience gained by a talented corps of young players and the maturation of the team's returning players will be important as SJU looks to take the next step into the upper echelon of the Atlantic 10.