May 9, 2005

This Week in Torero Tennis: No. 39 University of San Diego (16-6) will travel to Malibu, Calif. for the first round of the NCAA Tournament, hosted by Pepperdine University. On Saturday, May 14 at 2:00 P.M., San Diego will face off against No. 22 Stanford University (13-10) at the Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center. Pepperdine will face UC-Irvine at 11:00 A.M. The winners will meet on Sunday, May 15 at 1:00 P.M. for the chance to advance to College Station, TX for the men's championship finals, hosted by Texas A&M.

Last Time Around: At the 2005 West Coast Conference Championships, San Diego posted identical 4-0 victories over San Francisco and Portland to gain a berth into the finals against host Pepperdine. In a tense and thrilling match-up, the Waves fought off the feisty Toreros to come away with a 4-2 win and the automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.

"It was a great college match. It is exactly why you compete and play college tennis," noted head coach Tom Hagedorn after the final. "It was a hard-fought, good college match. It was awesome."

After capturing the doubles point, Pepperdine found itself in a 2-1 hole, thanks to singles victories by Robbie Blair and Pierrick Ysern. Blair defeated Richard Johnson at the No. 4 spot 6-3, 6-1, while Ysern took out Scott Doerner 6-4, 6-1 at the No. 1 position. The Waves answered with two singles victories on Courts 2 and 5 to go up 3-2 in the championship final. In the end, Jonas Berg outdueled Mirza Koristovic at the No. 3 position 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (5) to clinch the match for Pepperdine. The contest on Court 6 between Oscar Plotnik and Alexis Rafidison was abandoned, with Plotnik leading 6-2, 3-6, 6-5.

After the final, Nic Beuque and Ysern were selected to the All-WCC Singles Team, while Beuque and Koristovic were named to the Honorable Mention All-WCC Doubles Team. This is the third straight year that Ysern has earned all-conference honors.

About Stanford: The Cardinal enters Saturday's match-up with a national ranking of No. 22 and an overall record of 13-10. Stanford boasts three players ranked in the latest ITA Singles Polls, including No. 1 Sam Warburg, No. 15 KC Corkery and No. 73 James Wan. In addition, Corkery and Warburg, the defending NCAA doubles champions, register at No. 3 in the doubles poll. John Whitlinger is in his first year as head coach of the storied program, after serving as an assistant to the legendary Dick Gould for 18 seasons. During Whitlinger's tenure as an assistant coach, the Cardinal went 396-58 and captured nine NCAA team championships.

Ysern Collects All-American Accolades: A day after finding out his team would go to the Big Dance for the third straight year, Pierrick Ysern discovered that he will compete in the 2005 NCAA Singles Championships. The men's singles and doubles competition will be conducted May 25-30 at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center in College Station, Texas

Ysern has steadily climbed the ITA Singles Rankings throughout his three years as a Torero. According to the latest polls, he is ranked No. 10 in the country, after being rated as high as No. 5 earlier in the year. The three-time All-WCC Singles Team selection currently owns an overall record of 21-6 (15-4 dual match) and has 11 wins over ranked opponents, including No. 8 Ryler Deheart of Illinois and 2005 WCC Player of the Year Scott Doerner of Pepperdine. Ysern is one of the Top 16 seeds in the tournament and as a result, he has earned All-American recognition. The native of Paris, France is San Diego's third Division I All-American, joining Scott Lipton (1980) and Jose Luis Noriega (1989-1992)

"It is very exciting [to be named an All-American] because that was my primary objective the whole season," states Ysern. "When you work the whole year for this stuff and when you get it, it is rewarding and it is great for all the work that I have done."

WCC Monthly Honors: The West Coast Conference declared that Pierrick Ysern was the WCC Player of the Month for April. This is the first monthly honor for the International Relations major. Scott Doerner and Pedro Rico of Pepperdine picked up the April WCC Doubles Team of the Month.

The 5-9 Ysern has played exceptional tennis in the month of April, sporting an unblemished 4-0 record at the No. 1 spot for the Toreros. Noteworthy victories include his 6-4, 6-1 win over No. 34 Scott Doerner of Pepperdine, the 2005 WCC Player of the Year. Ranked No. 10 in the country, currently the highest-rated player in the West Coast Conference, he led his team to a second place finish in the WCC Championships in late April. The native of Paris, France sports an overall singles record of 15-4 for the dual season.

For the month of March, the West Coast Conference announced that senior Robbie Blair and freshman Thomas Liversage were the WCC Doubles Team of the Month. This was the first monthly honor for the duo. Pedro Rico of Pepperdine won the Player of the Month award for March.

In March, the University of San Diego posted a 12-1 record and a big reason for the recent success of the Toreros can be attributed to the steady play of Blair and Liversage. The pair has been the model of consistency, posting a spectacular 11-1 record, mainly at the No. 3 position. Their teamwork and dedication have been an inspiration for San Diego, which has won the doubles point in 9 out of 11 tries in March.

Saying Good-Bye to the Seniors: On Thursday, April 7, the University of San Diego paid tribute to seniors Nic Beuque and Robbie Blair by honoring their commitment to the men's tennis program over the years. And the two seniors returned the favor by leading the Toreros to a 4-0 victory over No. 65 Fresno State. Robbie Blair, along with partner Thomas Liversage, notched an 8-1 win in doubles to help USD win the doubles point and give the home team a 1-0 lead. Receiving victories from juniors Pierrick Ysern and Mirza Koristovic, the fate of the match rested on the shoulders of Beuque, who was in the midst of a difficult three-set battle with Jakub Cech. After saving three match points in the third set, Cech could only watch helplessly as Beuque powered home an ace to seal the 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 win and put an exclamation mark on a fabulous career at the USD West Tennis Courts.

"I just waited for Nic Beuque to be finished, to be honest," revealed Blair after USD had won the dual contest. "What a great match for him. His final match here and he clinches the game for the team win."

Added Beuque: "There are no words for how I feel right now. I just burst into tears 15 minutes after I won and I haven't realized that it is over here and it is my last home match. It's a great feeling to clinch the last match and battle the way I battled. It was amazing."

Blair, a Business Economics major from Stellenbosch, South Africa, has been the model of consistency and poise throughout his four years. He has always been a reliable competitor for the Toreros, garnering 115 total career wins at Alcalá Park.

"What can I say? It was definitely the time of my life and nothing that I have ever done or will do can replace the four years that I spent playing here," said Blair.

After playing his freshman year at the University of Alabama, Beuque transferred to USD and has been an integral member of the Torero program ever since. The Business major accumulated 84 total career victories in the Blue and White.

"I started off as a player who didn't want to play that much and was lazy. I didn't care too much about the team and today, I am all for the team," reflected Beuque. "I'm a different person. I grew up mentally and it was an amazing three years."

In addition, the Toreros said good-bye to assistant coach Ron Jenkins, who will be retiring at the end of the season. The 8th-year coach helped guide San Diego to over 100 dual match victories and has played an instrumental role in their success this year. A great communicator, listener and teacher, Jenkins will be missed by everyone involved with the Torero program.

Hagedorn Reaches Coaching Milestone: On Sunday, February 13, the University of San Diego beat Saint Mary's College by a score of 5-2. More importantly, however, was the fact that head coach Tom Hagedorn secured his 100th victory at Alcalá Park. While the ninth-year coach praised his former players for helping him reach this landmark, Hagedorn also cited the athletic department as another reason for his success.

"I am not a guy that likes to focus on me. [My 100 wins] is a tribute to the athletic department," noted Hagedorn. "It's great to work in an athletic department like this. The administration is great."

Looking back, Hagedorn is amazed at what he has been able to accomplish during his tenure at San Diego.

"Every year, I've tweaked and I feel like I've improved. Sometimes, it is just hard to believe that you have been coaching for so long. I've gotten old I guess," joked Hagedorn. "You can't be 32 and have 100 wins. Over the years, it adds up!

Currently, his record sits at 115-83. The Toreros have qualified for the NCAA Tournament twice under Hagedorn's helm and this year, the team is hoping to return to the Big Dance again. Prior to San Diego, Hagedorn was at the University of Arizona, where he was both an assistant coach under Bill Wright (1988-1998) and a four-year member of the tennis team (1984-1987). Hagedorn graduated from the University of Arizona in 1987 with a Bachelors of Science degree in Business Marketing.

Rankin' the Toreros: In the latest ITA Singles Top-100 Poll, junior Pierrick Ysern found himself near the top of the singles rankings, as his excellent Fall Season results propelled him to No. 10 in the country. Ysern advanced to the semifinals of the Icy Hot/ITA All-American Championships, as well as reaching the quarterfinals of the ITA Intercollegiate Indoor Championships. Teammate Nic Beuque makes his first appearance in the Top-100 this season, as his recent victories over No. 56 Roger Matalonga (Arizona) and No.44 Alex Slovic (Washington) have pushed the senior to No. 69 in the country. In the team rankings, San Diego checks in at No. 39.

International Flavor: The University of San Diego has recruited well internationally over the past few years and this season is no exception. The Toreros have representatives from Australia (Kenneth Prajoga), France (Nic Beuque and Pierrick Ysern), Mexico (Sammy Atri and Oscar Plotnik), Norway (Mirza Koristovic) and South Africa (Robbie Blair, Thomas Liversage and Michael Meschede). The lone American is Matt Ozurovich, who hails from Mission Viejo, Calif.

Coach's Corner: San Diego will be led by a quartet of upperclassmen - seniors Nic Beuque and Robbie Blair and juniors Pierrick Ysern and Mirza Koristovic. Head coach Tom Hagedorn could not be more pleased with the effort and intensity they put out on a daily basis and is impressed with their hunger to be challenged by the best:

"This group of guys believes in themselves. Ysern, Beuque, Blair, and Koristovic, when they got here, they wanted to be challenged, as any successful athlete does. We could fly in Cupcake City Division I teams and be 20-2 every year, but we made it a goal, as a team, to be challenged. We might be under .500 or slightly over .500, but we know that if we play well, we'll be Top 25."

March Madness: The month of March has been a special month for the Toreros. Although the team has played many matches during this timeframe, they have also posted one of the best records for a single month in school history, going 12-1. San Diego has faced eight ranked teams and won seven of those match-ups, highlighted by a 5-2 victory over No. 13 Washington. The Toreros have also defeated No. 23 Harvard, No. 47 Arizona, No. 56 Michigan, No. 57 Utah, No. 64 Northwestern, and No. 75 Princeton.

"We are now 12-1 in March and I'd be willing to bet this is the best March in USD men's tennis history," stated San Diego head coach Tom Hagedorn after their recent victory over Harvard. "We've played a ton of tennis and people are pretty sharp. Everyone is match tough and playing well. It was an amazing month."

Did You Know: Junior Mirza Koristovic is originally from Bosnia, but his family immigrated to Norway when he was 10 years old. The Business major considers both countries to be his home. The tennis team has many nicknames for the 6-1 right-hander, including The Oslo Express, Mr. Miyake, and The Butcher. In addition, Koristovic enjoys Chinese food from P.F. Chang's, but his favorite cuisine Norwegian food, especially when his mother does the cooking. For more information about Koristovic, please click here.