Ohio Wesleyan University | Battling Bishop Athletics

2008 Season Preview

[ Daniel Thangarajah ] With 7 returning lettermen, fifth-year Ohio Wesleyan men's tennis coach Tom Haddow looks to one of his most experienced Battling Bishop teams to improve upon last year's 7-10 overall record and seventh-place finish in the North Coast Athletic Conference.

Sophomore Adrian Barker (Shaker Heights), sophomore Brandon Luttinger (Hingham, Mass.) and junior Daniel Thangarajah (Dublin/Scioto) will be the top 3 players in the 2008 Bishop lineup.

Barker was an honorable mention All-NCAC selection in singles last year after compiling a 4-11 record, mostly at the No. 2 spot.

Luttinger posted a 5-4 record at No. 3 singles last spring and went 7-8 overall.

Thangarajah returns after missing the 2007 season.

[ Taimour Khan ] Junior Taimour Khan (Lahore, Pakistan/Aitchison), who went 4-5 in singles play last season, will open in the No. 4 spot.

Junior Garrett Paknis (Morristown, N.J./Madison) led the Bishops with an 8-6 record last year and will be in the No. 5 position.

The No. 6 spot is up for grabs between senior Jeff Hering (Sherborn, Mass./Palo Alto (Calif.)), a newcomer to the Bishop squad, and freshman Zach Weaver (Westerville/South), a 3-time all-conference selection in high school.

Junior Jason Grovenburg (Wilmette, Ill./New Trier) and sophomores Rob Doersam (Pickerington/North) and John Hering (Sherborn, Mass./Dover-Sherborn) also are returning lettermen, and freshman Scott Bobbitt (Pataskala/Watkins Memorial) rounds out the Bishop roster.

Barker and Luttinger will open the season as the No. 1 doubles team. They saw limited action together at No. 1 doubles in 2007.

Khan and Thangarajah will be the No. 2 doubles team. They compiled a 2-1 record at No. 3 doubles in 2006.

Weaver and Jeff Hering will team up at the No. 3 doubles spot.

The Bishops begin their season on Feb. 16 against Muskingum. They also will see action against Wabash, Wooster, Oberlin and Otterbein before heading to Hilton Head, S.C., for a spring break trip. Matches against nearby rivals Capital and Ohio Dominican highlight the non-conference schedule. The NCAC tournament will be held at Denison on April 26-27.

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