MEET THE TEAM | SCHEDULE/RESULTS | NEWS | ALMANAC

April 28, 2009

CLOSING THE CURTAIN - Saint Louis men's tennis concluded the 2008-09 campaign by placing fourth at the Atlantic 10 Championship in Monroeville, Pa., its best finish in four seasons of A-10 membership. The Billikens won seven of their last nine matches and posted a 14-7 record, their best mark since the 1996-97 team turned in a 14-8 ledger. SLU opened the A-10 Championship with a 4-3 win over Temple before falling 4-3 to eventual champion Xavier in the semifinals and 4-1 to George Washington in the third-place match.

DOUBLES LEAD THE WAY AT LEAGUE TOURNEY - Freshman Jake Hendrie and senior Sean McManus registered a 3-0 No. 2 doubles record at the A-10 Championship, and they did so in dramatic fashion. Hendrie and McManus edged their Temple and Xavier opponents 8-6 and outlasted their George Washington foes 9-8 (8-6). Juniors Ken Nordheim and James McArthur were 2-1 at No. 1 doubles. In singles action, McArthur enjoyed three-set triumphs against Temple and Xavier and went 2-1 at No. 2. Sophomore Bryan Beasley tallied a 2-1 slate while splitting time at Nos. 5 and 6, including a come-from-behind three-set victory in the Xavier match.

A SHOW OF RESPECT - The Billikens' No. 3 seed for the A-10 Championship was their highest in four years of A-10 membership. Saint Louis has improved its tourney finish every season, placing 10th in 2006, seventh in 2007 and fifth in 2008 prior to this year's fourth-place performance.

ESTABLISHING A FOUNDATION - Saint Louis has collected a double-digit victory total in consecutive seasons for the first time since the 2001-02 and 2002-03 teams won 13 and 10 matches, respectively. Coupled with last year's 11-10 slate, the Billikens have turned in consecutive winning seasons for the first time since the 1977-78 (15-12) and 1978-79 (21-10) squads accomplished the feat.

RECORD WATCH - Three Billikens eclipsed the school standard for doubles wins in a season. Ken Nordheim, Jake Hendrie and Sean McManus amassed records of 20-6, 20-7 and 20-9, respectively, to surpass the previous mark of 18 shared by Ikaika Jobe and Lance Vodicka, who teamed for an 18-8 record in 2002. James McArthur (19-6) landed in fourth on the season doubles list, while junior P.J. Hendrie (17-9) tied for seventh and senior Adam Reeb (15-10) tied for 12th. On the season list for singles victories, Nordheim (21-8) fell just one win shy of tying Jobe's school standard of 22 established in 2004. Bryan Beasley (15-5) and Jake Hendrie (15-10) tied for fifth on the season singles chart.

TOP MARKS - Several Billikens achieved career-best victory totals this season. Sean McManus enjoyed career highs in total wins (33) and doubles wins (20), as did P.J. Hendrie (26 total, 17 doubles) and Adam Reeb (21 total, 15 doubles). Senior Matt Gordon tallied a career-best five doubles wins, while P.J. Hendrie tied his career high with nine singles triumphs.

MAKING A CAREER OF IT - Sean McManus concluded his career ranked third in doubles wins (48), fourth in total wins (93) and tied for fourth in singles wins (45) on SLU's all-time lists. Also ranking among the top 20 on the Billiken career victory charts are P.J. Hendrie, fifth in doubles (42), ninth in total (68) and 15th in singles (26); Adam Reeb, seventh in doubles (38) and tied for 18th in singles (21); Matt Gordon, tied for sixth in singles (39); and Ken Nordheim, tied for 18th in singles (21).

DOUBLES PLAY A STRENGTH - Saint Louis registered a 39-19 record in dual-meet doubles action this season. The Billikens captured the doubles point 14 times in 21 matches and won all three doubles tilts in seven matches. Ken Nordheim and James McArthur were 15-5, including 14-4 at No. 1 in dual-meet play this spring. Sean McManus and Jake Hendrie were 17-6 overall and 12-5 at No. 2 in duals, while Adam Reeb and P.J. Hendrie were 9-8 overall and 9-7 at No. 3.

THE SINGLES SCENE - The Billikens had a winning dual-meet record at five of the six singles positions this spring. Ken Nordheim led the way with a 12-4 slate at No. 1. Bryan Beasley, who saw time at Nos. 4, 5 and 6, was 11-4, and Matt Gordon posted a 7-3 record while filling those same three spots. Sean McManus was 10-9 and played at least one match at every position except No. 6. Jake Hendrie, who split time between Nos. 3 and 4, finished with a 9-6 dual-meet ledger.

Saint Louis Billikens Men's Tennis

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