Fall Rankings Released...

The fall/preseason rankings have been released by the ITA and your Clipper (Men) have been placed placed at #14 Nationally and #1 in the East Region.  For a complete list of the national rankings click here. 

We will certainly be looking to make a homecoming to the top few teams in the country with the return of Andrey Boldarev and the addition of Illinois State University transfer Juuso Ojanen.  Andrey returns in top form and is eager to compete with the nation's elite players whereas Juuso has made an immediate splash by defeating Andrey at this year's ITA regional in September.

The Eastern rankings feature eight Clipper netmen including the top seven and also Ricardo Frey at #18.  It is quite an honor and achievement to have our full roster appear in the rankings and we will be working hard to stay there if not improve our position.  For a complete look at the eastern rankings click here.

The team has dedicated itself to a very disciplined approach going into the off season and leading up to the spring semester.  They are pushing harder than ever with their training and it is already paying dividends.  With this year's National Championships being held in Arizona, where the average temperature is scheduled to be in the high 90's F, player fitness will definitely be an issue and we will not accept conditioning as an excuse for poor performance if we are fortunate enough to qualify.

Check back soon for the release of the spring schedule.  We will continue to travel as much as possible to compete versus the top teams in the country including #1 Armstrong Atlantic State and #2 West Florida.

Nuff said...

Fall 2011 Rankings Released...

Hi there once again Clipper faithful. The ITA has released its rankings and as usual, your Clippers are well represented both regionally and nationally. Click here for the NCAA D2 East Regional rankings and click here for the NCAA D2 National Rankings.

A new system of voting is now in place for the National Rankings and I have mixed feelings about this for sure. I am not completely certain that an accurate list will be published as many regional chairmen have very limited exposure to teams in other regions. However, I do like the fact that the lists are now truncated.

The ranking faithful have selected Concordia as the #4 team in the country. In addition, we have three singles players ranked nationally. Dani is listed as #4, David makes his debut at #14 and Tomasz is tabbed an impressive #38. We do not have any doubles teams ranked but will be working very hard on doubles over the winter to be represented there as well.

The team is working hard on conditioning and will be sure to be in great shape for the spring championship season. I will update you with the full spring schedule just as soon as it is complete. We will be doing some traveling once again so as to play the elite teams in the country and to best prepare for yet another run at the NCAA D2 National Championship.

Not too shabby!

Nuff said...

First Spring Rankings...

After much deliberation, the first spring rankings have been established and announced by the ITA. Please note that the report date for this set of rankings was February 27th, and thus, prior to our Florida success.

As there was little play in our region, the ITA Eastern Regional rankings stay the same with us still at the top of the list (Click here for Regional Rankings).

We did make a small jump in the National Rankings, up to #8, as some highly rated and perhaps over-rated squads from the fall dropped out of the top ten (Click here for the National Rankings).

We will be off to Las Vegas, Nevada this Sunday 3/13 to square off with three more highly ranked teams.

Monday 3/14 vs. Fresno Pacific University (#1 NAIA)
Tuesday 3/15 vs. Abilene Christian University (#10 NCAA II)
Wednesday 3/16 vs. Hawai'i Pacific University (#25 NCAA II)

We will need to avoid complacency and a let-down after Florida to be successful out west. It seems as though the team is a little tired and satisfied this week. We will need to get recharged in a hurry to get Vegas wins. If we continue the success and are able to defeat ACU and HPU, we should ascend into the top 3 or 4 in the next set of rankings that will be published 3/30.

With our current #8 ranking we have tied our all-time high for NCAA II. We look forward to setting a new mark in a few weeks and continuing on our path to achieving greater goals in May.

Nuff said...

National Rankings Released...

The ITA has released the Fall / Preseason rankings (click here for full rankings) and your Clippers have maintained their place at #10. The team rankings are identical to the final rankings from last season despite roster changes and some significant fall play. However, the national chair and some of the committee's more "influential" members have decided to use a new philosophy this fall, so there has been no movement. But enough about that.

As I mentioned, we have kept our #10 ranking which still places us among the elite in the division. However, that being said, I believe that we deserve a better ranking and we will demonstrate this in the spring when we have the chance to play many ranked teams.

Also, we are pretty well represented in the individual singles and doubles rankings. Andrey Boldarev checks in at #14 and Daniele Piludu at #39. I am not sure that we will ever be able to get our entire top 6 ranked in the top 20 nationally like some other schools, but I am sure we will have better representation when certain "influential" coaches see our guys play and see some of their results.

We also have two doubles teams ranked. Boldarev and Piludu are #7 and Tamas Dobrotka and Geza Bazula are #26. Our doubles has been pretty impressive so far considering that we have four new teams playing together. I am not certain that these will be the teams that will be taking to the courts in the spring but doubles will be an area that we focus quite a bit on and an area that we will need to improve to be successful going forward (no pun intended).


We are working hard in the off season and will continue to do so. I expect that the players will be in the collective best shape of their lives and will be ready to compete versus any team on the schedule. I look forward to reviewing the players goals and helping them to achieve great things. Lets be special.

Nuff said...

Fall "Preseason" Rankings...

Greetings Clipper tennis fans. The ITA rankings have been released and are being called the "Fall/Preseason" rankings. Things have changed a bit as the rankings are not so much based on action that has taken place in the fall but rather mainly reflect how the season ended last May. This seems odd to me but since there are no specific ranking criteria suggested by the ITA ranking chairman, this is what we have to report.

East Region:

Team:

1. Concordia College 2. Queens College
3. Bentley University
4. Philadelphia University
5. Merrimack College
6. Southern New Hampshire University
7. University of the Sciences (PA)
8. Chestnut Hill College
9. Stonehill College
10. Adelphi University

Singles:

1. Andrey Boldarev - Concordia
2. Daniele Piludu - Concordia 3. Attila Toth - Queens
4. Felix Missal - Concordia
5. David Tisserand - Concordia
6. Geza Bazula - Concordia
7. Tamas Dobrotka - Concordia 8. Tomas Gajdusek – UDC
9. Andreas Lindell – Concordia10. Patryk Polus - Queens
11. Juan Arango-Campo - Southern New Hampshire
12. Alvaro Vargas – USP
13. Tim Fayed - Stonehill
14. Mario Gutierrez – Chestnut Hill
15. Dave Burstein - Queens

Doubles:

1. Boldarev / Piludu – Concordia
2. Bazula / Dobrotka – Concordia 3. Toth / Burstein – Queens
4. Tisserand / Lindell – Concordia 5. Kazekevich / Vargas – USP
6. Burke / Sqouros – Philadelphia
7. Wever / Ribeiro – Bentley
8. Polus / Smith – Queens
9. Missal / Frey – Concordia10. Nieves / Voynov - Adelphi


As you can see by the plentiful bold, blue font, your Concordia netmen are well represented. The ITA national rankings are scheduled to be released 11/9/10 provided they are approved by the national committee. We look to continue our top 10 team ranking and also to have players ranked nationally in the singles and doubles. Check back soon...

Join me in congratulating the players.

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Final Rankings...

The Final NCAA II National Rankings (June 2, 2010) have been released and your Concordia Clippers are included in the top 10 (click here for complete rankings). In my heart of hearts, I believe that we are better than several teams ranked ahead of us but it is what it is. Next year we will have more competition against the nation's elite and will have a solid chance to be ranked higher.

Alex Grubin finishes the year at #4 in singles and Andrey Boldarev at #29. Alex and Andrey also finished the 2010 campaign at #4 in the doubles. These are no small accomplishments for these fine young men and both should be congratulated.

In addition, Alex is named as All-American in singles and doubles whereas Andrey is named All-American in doubles.

What a great year. I hope we have some more and new names in the rankings next season.

Nuff said...

Rankings...

Well it looks like another farce. Yes that's right, once again we are in the process of compiling the NCAA II National Tennis Rankings as per the ITA. I hate to sound so negative but this process is somewhat of a joke and it seems likely that the Final Rankings will once again be fairly inaccurate...in my opinion of course.

We certainly try very hard to get our East Regional rankings correct, as it is important for the kids who work so hard and that deserve the due recognition. I am not so sure that National committee feels the same obligation.

Well time will tell. I hope that some fair and accurate rankings are produced this week.

Nuff said...

Rankings...

The March 2, 2010 rankings have been released by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association for NCAA II (click here for complete rankings). The Clippers have remained in the #9 spot in the nation.

Division II Men - National

1. ARMSTRONG

2. BARRY

3. VALDOSTA
4. LYNN

5. HAWAII PACIFIC

6. OUACHITA BAPTIST

7. WEST FLORIDA

8. COLUMBUS STATE

9. CONCORDIA

10. ROLLINS
Concordia is poised to move up a few spots in the rankings with their spring break results and some recent losses by a few of the top ten ranked teams. The next ranking release date is 3/30/10 and will include team, singles and doubles rankings.

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Clippers #9 in ITA/NCAA II National Rankings

With the release of the Fall 2009 ITA/NCAA II National Rankings, the Concordia College Clippers have been ranked #9 in the the national poll by the ranking committee. This is the second time in their illustrious history that the Clippers have been ranked inside the top ten.

The top 10 includes #1 and two-time defending National Champions Armstrong Atlantic State University, #2 Barry University who defeated the Clippers in the 2009 National Semifinal, #3 Lynn University, #4 Valdosta State University, #5 Hawaii Pacific University, #6 Ouachita Baptist University, #7 University of West Florida, #8 Columbus State University, #9 Concordia College, and #10 Rollins College. (click here for complete national rankings)

The National Doubles rankings were also released and as expected the duo of Alex Grubin and Andrey Boldarev are atop the rankings in the #1 slot. This is the first time that a Clipper team has earned the ultimate ranking.

The National Singles Rankings have also been posted and Alex Grubin is #2 followed immediately by Andrey Boldarev who with his improved play, made a huge jump from #33 last spring, all the way to the #3 spot in the country.
The Clippers are heavily represented in the NCAA East Regional Rankings:

Singles:

1. Grubin
2. Boldarev
4. Raphael Namias
5. Tamas Dobrotka
6. Andreas Lindell
8. Felix Missal
Doubles:

1. Grubin/Boldarev
2. Missal/Namias
3. Dobrotka/Lindell

(click here for complete regional rankings)

The Clippers will begin their championship season when the spring semester begins in January 2010. The next ranking date will be March 2, 2010.
Nuff said...