SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- The West Coast Conference announced the 2014 WCC Men's Tennis Preseason Poll and All-WCC Preseason Team on Monday, as voted on by the head coaches within the conference.
Santa Clara received 50 points in the preseason poll which tied it for fourth in the conference with USF. The Broncos are 2-1 on the 2014 season, including a strong 4-0 win over No. 64 Georgia State on Sunday in the ITA Kick-Off Weekend consolidation match.
Santa Clara also defeated UC Davis, 4-3, in its season opener. The team's lone loss came against No. 4 USC, who won the NCAA Tournament for four consecutive years from 2009-12.
Bronco senior John Lamble was voted to the preseason All-WCC Team, along with only five other players in the conference. This was the second straight year that Lamble was named to the preseason All-Conference team.
The senior from Saratoga, Calif. cruised to a 6-1, 6-2 win against Georgia State in his last match, and he downed his UC Davis opponent by the same score on opening day. Lamble's record is 9-3 and he has won five of his last six matches. Lamble, whose father and sister played tennis at Santa Clara, has amassed an outstanding career record of 69-34, placing him fourth in the program's history in wins.
In addition to his consistent play at No. 1 singles, Lamble and Ilya Osintsev have anchored the top doubles position for the Broncos. They are 2-1 on the season and their all-time record is 24-18, good for fourth in Bronco men's tennis history.
The Broncos will play all five of their February matches at home on the Mission Campus. Santa Clara hosts its lone doubleheader of the season on Sat., Feb. 1 when it takes on UC Santa Cruz at 10am and Sonoma State at 2:30pm.
No. 13 Pepperdine, two-time defending WCC Champions, garnered eight of nine possible first place votes and 80 of a possible 81 overall points. No. 40 San Diego, the 2011 WCC Champion, was second with two first place votes and 73 overall points. No. 45 BYU finished third in preseason balloting with 61 points.
2014 Men's Preseason Coaches Poll
1. Pepperdine (8) - 80
2. San Diego (2) – 73
3. BYU – 61
T-4. Santa Clara – 50
T-4. San Francisco – 50
6. Pacific – 44
7. Portland – 28
8. Loyola Marymount – 27
9. Saint Mary's – 26
10. Gonzaga – 11
2014 Men's All-WCC Preseason Team
John Lamble, Sr., Santa Clara
Alvaro Nazal, Jr., Gonzaga
Alex Sarkissian, Sr., Pepperdine
Clarke Spinosa, Sr., San Diego
David Sofaer, Sr., Pepperdine
Sem Verbeek, So., Pacific