Oct. 20, 2003
EUGENE, Ore. - Santa Clara University men's tennis players Gernot Fischer and Eric Kochanski became the first Bronco tandem to advance to a regional championship, but were unable to come away with a victory this afternoon at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Regional, hosted by the University of Oregon at the Student Tennis Center in Eugene.
 Doubles finalists Gernot Fischer and Eric Kochanski at the ITA Regional in Eugene, Ore.  |
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"We didn't play as well today as we had been through the tournament," Kochanski said after the match. "They were are a really strong team and we would have had to play at the top of our game to defeat them."
Slovic and Vlaski broke the Bronco tandem's serve in the first game and took that momentum through the rest of the match.
"We stayed in it and kept it close, they just had a little bit more confidence in their play and that made the difference," he added.
By advancing to today's final, Fischer and Kochanski bested the Broncos' previous top effort, when Chris Lam and Rick Ruso advanced to the semifinals of the 2002 Regional.
Fischer and Kochanski were fighting for a spot in the November 6-9 ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships, hosted by the University of Michigan. Across the nation, 17 ITA Regional Championships are currently being held to determine the field.
The 2003 ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships is the second of three national championship events for college tennis this season. The first event-the IcyHot/ITA Men's All-American Championships-was held last week, and the third event is the NCAA Championships in May. Overall, more than 10,000 players from nearly 600 schools participate annually in the ITA Regional and National Intercollegiate Championships.
The Broncos will close out the fall season at the Southern California Intercollegiate November 5-9.
Doubles, Final
(1) Slovic/Vlaski (WASH) def. Fischer/Kochanski (SCU) 8-2