Tulane University
#19 California
No. 22 Men’s Tennis Takes on No. 19 California at ITA Kickoff Weekend
Jan 27, 2018 | Men's Tennis
NEW ORLEANS - The 22nd-ranked Tulane men's tennis team will get its first test against a nationally ranked opponent when it heads to Berkeley, Calif., to compete in ITA Kickoff Weekend against 19th-ranked California on Sunday, January 28. First serve is scheduled for noon (CT).
The winner of Sunday's match will advance to face the winner of 13th-ranked Stanford and Oregon on Monday at 3 p.m., while the consolation match will be played beforehand at noon.
RETURN TO BERKELEY
Tulane competed at Cal in last year's ITA Kickoff Weekend, defeating Pepperdine, 5-2, on day one, before dropping a tight, 4-2, matchup against the then No. 4-ranked Golden Bears.
LAST TIME OUT
Tulane (1-0) won its ninth straight season opener, 6-1, over the University of Miami (Fla.) on Friday, Jan. 19. The Green Wave won the doubles point, before taking five of six singles matches, including victories over a pair of top-100 players at the No. 1 and No. 2 spots, courtesy of wins by Constantin Schmitz and 112th-ranked sophomore Ewan Moore, respectively.
SCOUTING CALIFORNIA
The Golden Bears (2-0) have not played in 14 days, but own victories over Bryant (6-1 on Jan. 12) and at Tulsa (4-2 on Jan. 14) in their first two dual matches of the spring season. Cal does not have any ranked singles players in the current iTA poll, but possesses the No. 52 doubles team in Billy Griffith and T.J. Nishimura.
Last season, the Bears compiled a 20-8 record and reached the round of 16 in the 2017 NCAA Tournament, before being ousted by North Carolina, 4-1.
CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Constantin Schmitz was named the first American Athletic Conference Men's Tennis Player of the Week for the 2018 spring season on Jan. 23 after a 6-3, 6-2 singles victory over No. 78 Christian Langmo to clinch the match in the Green Wave's 6-1 season-opening victory over Miami (Fla.) last Friday.
The weekly nod is the sixth of Schmitz's career, as he received the honor five times last season in addition to the being named the league's player of the month in October of 2016.
The 2017 ITA All-American and American Athletic Conference Co-Player of the Year now has seven victories over top-100 players dating back to the fall season.
IN THE RANKINGS
In the latest Oracle/ITA team rankings, Tulane ranks No. 22 nationally, a jump of eight spots from the final poll of the 2017 spring season that had the Green Wave tabbed No. 30. The only American Athletic Conference team currently listed in the top 25, the Green Wave's highest ranking last season was 20th - their highest under Booras' leadership.
The Wave has four players listed in the singles poll and two doubles teams ranked. Senior and 2017 All-America choice Constantin Schmitz holds the Wave's highest singles ranking at No. 21, followed by sophomore Luis Erlenbusch at No. 46, junior Tyler Schick at No. 107 and sophomore Ewan Moore at No. 112.
Schick and Erlenbusch, who teamed up for an 8-3 mark during the fall and defeated a top-30 opponent, rank 16th nationally. Freshman Hamish Stewart and sophomore Tim Ruetzel received the No. 47 ranking after compiling a 5-1 record, which included a perfect 3-0 ledger and a championship at the CCB Invitational in Birmingham, Ala., in November.
AN ELITE EIGHT
Tulane is one of just eight programs nationally with at least four singles players listed in the ITA's individual rankings, joining Georgia (5), Ohio State (5), Wake Forest (5), Mississippi State (4), North Carolina (4), South Carolina (4) and Texas (4).
RAISING THE BAR
The Green Wave won 19 dual matches during the 2017 season, the most for the program in the post-Katrina era. The previous best was 16, set in 2016.
ABOUT #ITAKickOff
There are 15 "regionals" played on both the men's and women's side, with four teams competing in each regional. The winners of the single-elimination event advance to next month's ITA Division I National Team Indoor Championships. Wisconsin (women's) and Washington (men's) will serve as hosts for the National Team Indoors and received automatic invitations to the event, and are exempt from competing in the Kick-Off Weekend.
Host sites for the ITA Kick-Off Weekend were determined using the final 2016-17 Oracle/ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings. A draft was held to fill the No.'s 2-4 seeds at all locations, again using the final national team rankings as a guide to determine draft order.
Opening round contests at each location pits the No. 1 (host) seed versus the No. 4 seed, and the No. 2 seed against the No. 3 seed. The two winners advance to the following day's championship match, while the two losing teams will square off in a consolation match.
To view Kick-Off Weekend matchups for both men and women, visit the official event page. Results for each regional site will be updated throughout the weekend. You can also follow the conversation on social media by using the #ITAKickOff hashtag.
Players Mentioned
