Jan. 26, 2005
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Veteran Leadership and Talented Youth Highlight 2005 Broncos...
A quartet of seniors will lead the Broncos this season, all of whom boast solid credentials on and off the court. All-WCC singles honoree Taylor Bedilion and co-captain Francisco Zepponi have recorded double-digit victories the previous three seasons and find themselves within striking distance of the top singles record. The passionate Ben Hidalgo has created a niche for himself in doubles, while Eric Kochanski tied for the most singles victories during the fall.
"This group will lead our team in on-court competition, strength and conditioning, academics and mentoring our younger players," George Husack explained. "Each individual's personality is unique and complements one another. We are fortunate to have such a strong group of seniors, as they each know what it means to represent our program and university."
Two sophomores and five newcomers round out the squad. The charismatic Kevin McQuaid and consistent Bobby Rasmussen are joined by hard hitting transfer Jan Macek, and talented freshmen Tyler Wilson, AJ Kerin, Blane Shields and Chris Iwamura. Together, this solid group provides strength and depth to the Bronco line up.
Santa Clara's schedule is once again challenging. The Broncos square off against many nationally-ranked programs including Stanford (No. 7), Rice (No. 16), Pepperdine (No. 27), Cal (No. 28), San Diego (No. 45), Oregon (No. 49), Fresno State (No. 56), New Mexico (No. 65), UC Santa Barbara (No. 67) and UC Irvine (No. 73).
"Our annual goal is to face as many nationally-ranked programs as possible," Husack said. "Whether we play them at home or on the road, it's important to challenge ourselves so we improve as a team and put ourselves in a position to make the NCAA tournament."
Making the NCAA Championships in May would mark a first for the Bronco program, something not lost on each team member. It will be the seniors who will lead the squad and the youth movement who'll keep the engines burning. The strong combination of experience, depth and eagerness to improve will equate to a successful campaign on the courts.
Bronco Pro-Am Invitational..
The Santa Clara tennis community is invited to join the men's program at the Eighth Annual Bronco Pro-Am Invitational on Saturday, March 19, from 2-6 p.m.
The traditional round-robin doubles tournament will be held at the Degheri Tennis Center at Santa Clara University and feature current and former players, coaching staff and many Bronco tennis supporters.
Interested participants, volunteers and/or contributors may email or call George Husack at ghusack@scu.edu or 408-554-4069. The entry fee is $125 with all proceeds going directly to the Broncos' roadtrip to New Mexico in April.
Meet Chris Iwamura...
Year: Freshman
Major: Computer Engineering
Home: Honolulu, Hawaii
Nickname: Tofer
Favorite Food: Steak
Least Favorite Food: Broccoli
Place I like to frequent on campus: The Bronco...a sports lounge at SCU
A favorite film: The Star Wars Trilogy
Song that pumps me up: "Crawling In The Dark", by Hoobastank
Favorite sports team: University of Hawaii football
If I wasn't playing tennis, I'd be: Studying even harder
If there was a movie about me, it would be: Zoolander
Bronco Ties The Knot...
Former Bronco assistant coach Brett Masi married Ms. Desiree Wood this past January 16. The couple have purchased a home and now live in Orange, Calif. Congratulations!
Bronco Bits..
Senior Taylor Bedilion was named Bronco Scholar-Athlete of the Week during the current winter quarter. This marks the fourth consecutive year that Taylor has received the honor... Sophomore Bobby Rasmussen was accepted to the Accelerated Cooperative Education honors program. ACE works with students to personally engage them with business executives from Silicon Valley companies who serve as mentors and models of leaders in action... Former Bronco Jeremy Testwuide has moved to San Diego and trades futures on the Dow Jones EuroStocks 50 exchange for Altea Trading Group... Mannaray, the band formed by former Bronco John Vest, recently hosted a laser show and CD release party last December. Bronco tennis alumni were on hand to celebrate including Rick Ruso, Justin Lent, Jenny Siegel and Sean Burns. The group's CD will be available in retail outlets later this month... Francisco Zepponi signed on with the accounting firm of Burr, Pilger & Mayer of Palo Alto. He'll begin as an accounting and consulting associate next fall... Bronco birthdays celebrated this winter included Jan Macek (Dec 20) and Francisco Zepponi (Jan 8).
