Jan. 8, 2009
CORAL GABLES, FLA… The University of Miami men’s tennis team enters the spring season ranked No. 17 in the country according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s (ITA) Division I Preseason Top 25 released this week.
The Hurricanes return all but one player from last season’s 17-8 squad that advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and finished the season ranked 19th in the nation.
Among those veterans back for the Hurricanes are All-Americans Daniel Vallverdu (Valencia, Valenzuela) and Carl Sundberg (Oslo, Norway). The duo enters the 2009 season ranked No. 28 in doubles competition, while Vallverdu is No. 17 in the singles rankings, followed by Sundberg at No. 96.
The doubles tandem of Vallverdu and Sundberg – who were No. 1 in the nation heading into the 2008 fall season – played sparingly together in the fall and went on to finish 1-1. Last spring, the duo went 25-9 – including seven wins over ranked opponents, earned All-America honors and advanced to the NCAA Tournament’s Round of 16.
Vallverdu, the 2008 ITA Southeast Region Player to Watch, will play at the No. 1 singles position for the Hurricanes for the second-straight season. The three-time All-ACC and four-time All-American put together an 8-2 record in the fall, including four wins versus ranked opponents, and advanced to the finals of the ITA Southeast Regional Championships.
Sundberg went 3-3 in singles competition during the fall, including a 1-0 mark versus ranked opponents.
The Hurricanes open spring competition at home on Thurs., Jan. 22, versus Florida Atlantic at 6 p.m.