March 30, 2010
Lobo TV: Coach Dils Previews Utah, BYU
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The University of New Mexico men’s tennis team opens Mountain West Conference play Thursday at the Linda Estes Tennis Center, hosting Utah at 1 p.m., MT. The Lobos close the week against 32nd-ranked BYU Saturday afternoon.
The match with the Utes comes off the heels of New Mexico’s dominant 7-0 win over Northern Arizona last Saturday. The Lobos (5-7) surrendered only one set against the Lumberjacks, sweeping though all six singles and three doubles matches.
The match with Northern Arizona is the last for the Lobos before they open Mountain West Conference play. New Mexico hosts MWC foe Utah on Thursday, April 1, then continues it’s conference schedule at home against Brigham Young two days later on Saturday, April 3.
SCOUTING UTAH
The Lobos beat the Utes the one time they met last season, 5-2, in San Diego. Coach F.D. Robbins’ squad currently sports a 5-10 record, most recently having beat New Mexico State 4-3 on Friday, March 26. Utah had lost seven straight matches before beating the Aggies. Of the Utes’ 10 losses, eighthave been against ranked teams. Utah has not beat a ranked team this season.
Utah Senior Phillip Eilers is riding a four match winning streak at the No. 1 singles position. The doubles team of seniors Timmy Allin and Jason Smits are also on a four match winning streak at the No. 2 doubles slot.
Utah finished the 2008-09 season with a 16-8 record, 4-3 in the MWC. The Utes ended their season with a 4-2 loss to UNLV in the MWC tournament quarterfinal.
New Mexico holds a 29-22 all-time series lead against Utah.
SCOUTING BYU
The No. 32-ranked Cougars play at Air Force Thursday before Saturday’s matchup with the Lobos. BYU is 15-4 on the season, having lost its last outing 4-3 at No. 67 UC Santa Barbara.
The Cougars’ Evan Urbina has already notched 20 wins this season and is playing at the No. 1 singles position.
New Mexico beat BYU 4-3 last season. The Cougars finished with a 15-12 record for the 2008-09 season, closing their season with a 4-1 loss to San Diego State in the first round of the MWC tournament.
BYU leads the all-time series against UNM, 28-26-1. The Cougars are coached by Brad Pierce.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
The Lobos are looking to ride the momentum of their 7-0 win over Northern Arizona into conference play. Look for New Mexico to jump out to a quick start in pursuit of the doubles’ point. Coach Alan Dils has emphasized doubles play in recent practices. The Lobos claimed the doubles point against the Lumberjacks after surrendering it in their five previous matches.
Sophomore Ben Dunbar, who has held down the No. 1 singles spot for over a month now, enters the match with the Utes with an 12-10 singles record.
Freshman Jadon Phillips, who alternates between the No. 3 and 4 spot in singles play, is 17-9 on the season. Conor Berg, also true freshman who usually plays in the No. 6 spot, is 13-9 in singles play.
SERVING UP A CURE
The University of New Mexico men’s and women’s tennis teams are partnering up with the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Association (ALSA) to help in the fight against ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. The tennis teams will coordinate a season-long campaign, Serving Up A Cure, to help raise money for ALS research.
Serving Up A Cure will allow people to get involved in a couple of different ways. Donors can pledge money per match or per set won for either the men’s or women’s tennis teams. Forms to make donations and instructions for submitting them can be found at GOLOBOS.com on either the men’s or women’s tennis page. ALS affects adults of all ages, sexes and races. Every 90 minutes someone is diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s Disease and every 90 minutes someone dies from this disease. There is no known cause or cure and the cost for an ALS patient is $200,000 per year.
Please help the men’s and women’s tennis teams fight against ALS. For more information contact Roy Cañada at rcanada@unm.edu or at 925-5780.