MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES MEN'S TENNIS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
For Immediate Release-Wednesday, March 18, 2010
MAC Men's Tennis Player of the Week
Wojciech Starakiewicz, Buffalo - Sophomore, Warsaw, Poland
Sophomore Wojciech Starakiewicz went through last week's four matches with an unblemished 7-0 record. Starakiewicz and Kirill Kolomyts combined for four wins as the top doubles duo for the Bulls. In singles play, he went 3-0 with his match against Troy's Luis Henrique Grangeiro stopped in the third set after the Trojans had clinched the fourth team point. The sophomore, who played last season at Tulsa, is tied for the team lead with 12 singles victories with Alex Kalinin and Marcelo Mazzetto.
Additional Nominees:
Eduardo Pavia, Ball State - Junior, Carolina, Puerto Rico
Junior Eduardo Pavia went 2-0 at No. 1 singles on the Cardinals spring trip in Las Vegas, Nevada. Pavia started the week after posting a two set (6-3, 6-0) victory over Simon Unger of Weber State. He also claimed an 8-4 victory at No. 1 doubles helping the Cardinals to a 5-2 win over Weber State. Pavia closed out the week with a No. 1 singles win over No. 56 UNLV after defeating Mehdi Bouras 6-3, 7-6. Pavia has the best singles overall mark on the team as he has improved to 10-1 on the season.
Maksym Bartiuk, Northern Illinois - Freshman, Ukraine
Junior Marksym Bartiuk posted a flawless 4-0 record at the top singles position, with three victories coming via straight-set decisions, in leading Northern Illinois to a 3-1 record on its spring trip to Orlando last week. Bartiuk also recorded two wins in doubles play. In the Huskies' 5-2 win over Sacred Heart, Bartiuk posted a come-from-behind (1-6, 6-3, 6-3) win over the Pioneers' top singles player, Kirill Kasyanov. Teaming with senior Javier Bernabe, he also posted an 8-6 win at the top doubles flight. In the ensuing match against Liberty, Bartiuk cruised past Siim Tuus (6-3, 6-1), posting his seventh singles victory of the season in the process. In the Huskies' 4-3 win over Connecticut, Bartiuk recorded a 7-5, 6-0 win over Andrew Marcus, and then posted an 8-4 victory alongside classmate Maximilian Phillips at the No. 2 doubles position. Bartiuk wrapped up the spring trip with a straight-set (6-1, 6-4) win over Bethune Cookman's top singles player, Marc Vanja Misanovic. On the season, Bartiuk, one of three freshmen on the Huskies' roster, has posted a team-best 9-4 singles record -- all of those wins have occurred at the top singles flight. He has won five-of his last six matches overall, and has also recorded 10 victories in doubles play.
Previous Men's Tennis Players of the Week
January 28: Aleksandar Elezovic - Toledo
February 3: Michael Calderone - Western Michigan
February 10: Casey Cullen - Western Michigan
February 17: Knot Likitkumchorn - Toledo
February 24: Kazuya Komada - Western Michigan
March 3: Aleksandar Elezovic - Toledo
March 10: Casey Cullen - Western Michigan
March 17: Wojciech Starakiewicz - Buffalo