FEBRUARY 7, 2012

WHAT'S AHEAD: The 73rd-rated Drake men's tennis team faces a challenging week with three matches in four days testing the Bulldogs, including a date with No. 74 East Tennessee State. 

Drake opens competition against the Buccaneers from ETSU on Thursday (Feb. 9) at 11:00 a.m. at the Roger Knapp Tennis Center before weekend home tilts versus Nebraska Kearney and Northern Illinois on Saturday (Feb. 11) and Sunday (Feb. 12), respectively.  Match time against the Lopers is slated for 3:00 p.m., while the Bulldogs will tussle with the Huskies at 12:00 p.m.

A LOOK BACK: Drake completed its doubleheader sweep last Saturday (Feb. 4) recording a 7-0 triumph over Chicago State at the Roger Knapp Center after earlier in the day downing Western Illinois by an identical score.

The 70th-ranked Bulldogs needed to earn only one victory in doubles to clinch the point as the Cougars had only five available players and were forced to default wins at the No. 3 doubles and No. 6 singles positions.

Securing that triumph to provide Drake with the doubles tally was the duo of junior Jean Erasmus (Windhoek, Namibia) and sophomore Robin Goodman (Cambridge, England) at No. 2, 8-2.

In singles, senior Cesar Bracho (Luque, Paraguay) was awarded a default win at No. 6 before freshman Grant Tesmer (Lincoln, Neb.) extended the Bulldogs' lead to 3-0 following his 6-0, 6-0 triumph at No. 5.

Earning the match-clinching victory was freshman Alen Salibasic (Tuzla, Bosnia & Herzegovina), who won at No. 2, 6-1, 6-1.

Drake opened its home campaign with a 7-0 victory past Western Illinois, as the Bulldogs were decisive in sweeping the Leathernecks in the doubles competition.

The bottom of the lineup provided the Bulldogs with some immediate spark in singles action as freshmen Ben Mullis (Leicestershire, England) and Tesmer posted wins at the Nos. 5 and 6 positions, respectively, to give Drake a 3-0 lead.

Clinching the match for the Bulldogs was Erasmus at No. 2, 6-3, 6-2.

IN OUR LAST MEETINGS: Drake will take to the court against East Tennessee State for the first time since the 2007 campaign, while also facing Nebraska Kearney and Northern Illinois for the second- and third-consecutive seasons, respectively.

On March 10, 2007 in Lincoln, Neb., 53rd-ranked Drake won its 10th-straight match, soaring past 48th-rated East Tennessee State, 5-2.

The Bulldogs claimed a 1-0 lead after doubles play on the strength of victories at the first and third positions.  After the Buccaneers squared the match at one with a win at No. 4 singles, Maor Zirkin pushed Drake ahead to stay with a triumph at No. 2 singles.

Drake capped a successful opening weekend to its 2011 campaign earning a 7-0 triumph over Nebraska-Kearney on Jan. 30, 2011 at the Roger Knapp Tennis Center.

The Bulldogs swept doubles play before singles wins by Jean Erasmus and Anis Ghorbel (Sfax, Tunisia) at the Nos. 3 and 4 positions set the stage for Mauricio Ballivian to seal the match with a triumph at No. 1.

Later in the season on April 3, 2011, Drake closed out its non-conference slate notching its ninth-consecutive victory with a 7-0 decision over Northern Illinois.

Ballivian sparked the effort, collecting a pair of triumphs, while the bottom half of the line-up delivered for Drake in singles with Erasmus, Robin Goodman and Cesar Bracho collecting victories to secure the win for the Bulldogs.

UP NEXT:  The Bulldogs hit the road traveling to Lincoln, Neb., for showdowns against No. 38 Nebraska and 66th-ranked Idaho. The Cornhuskers will test Drake on Feb. 17 before the Bulldogs battle the Vandals on Feb. 18.