Jan. 7, 2014
SKILLMAN, N.J. - The San Diego State men's tennis team will begin the 2014 dual season ranked 49th in the nation, while junior Thorsten Bertsch (Mannheim, Germany) is ranked No. 69, the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) recently released.
In addition, Bertsch is No. 12 in the Southwest Region, while senior Juan Florez (Bogota, Colombia) is ranked 19th and the Aztecs' doubles team of Bertsch and senior Hunter Nicholas (Park City, Utah) is ranked No. 3.
Bertsch finished the fall season with a 7-3 record, including a quarterfinal appearance in the USTA/ITA Southwest Regional Championship. The junior also earned his first-career Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) point after winning a main-draw match in the Laguna Niguel USTA Pro Futures on Sept. 25.
An all-Mountain West first-team selection last dual season, Bertsch has moved up the rankings considerably since being ranked No. 114 at the start of the fall season. He was ranked as high as No. 108 last season as a sophomore.
Florez went 5-1 during the fall season and won the Aztec Invitational Flight 3 singles championship at Aztec Tennis Center on Oct. 6. The senior finished 12-11 during the 2013 dual season.
The Aztecs' No. 1 doubles team of Bertsch and Nicholas was a first-team all-MW selection last dual season, and went 6-4 during the fall. The duo advanced to the round of 16 at the Southwest Regional, and also made it to the championship round of the Battle of the Bay Classic.
San Diego State finished the 2013 dual season with an 18-8 overall record, including a perfect 6-0 mark in conference play, en route to winning the MW regular season championship outright. In the process, the Aztecs were ranked as high as No. 37 in the nation, while head coach Gene Carswell was named MW Coach of the Year for the fourth time in his career.
SDSU begins its 2014 dual season with a doubleheader on Saturday, Jan. 18, as the Aztecs play host to MW foe Nevada at 10 a.m. PT, and UC Riverside at 3 p.m. PT. Both matches will be held at Aztec Tennis Center.