The Omnibus

Issue date: 4/15/04 Section: Sports

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Sophomore Dante Cipulli won his second MIAA Player of the Week honors last week. Cipulli teamed up with senior Mark Eori to lead Southwest Baptist University Men's Tennis team to a number one seed in the MIAA Championships.

SBU sophomore Dante Cipulli was named MIAA men´s tennis Player of the Week last week.

If SBU wins the Championships, it will be their 12th conference championship in the 15 seasons SBU has been in the MIAA.

Despite a tough 3-6 loss to Drury, SBU was able to capture the MIAA's top seed with victories over Rockhurst, Graceland, and Washburn. The wins bring SBU's overall record to 13-4 as they enter the Broncho Invitational April 15-17. The invitational includes a rematch with Drury on Saturday.

Leading the stellar play of the Bearcats is Cipulli who is now ranked second in singles competition in the nation and is undefeated this spring. His overall record this year is 31-1. His only loss came in the NCAA Division II Singles Championship last fall.

Cipulli was named Player of the Week for the week of April 4-10 and was the last of four straight SBU men to receive the award until Lander Panera of Northwest Missouri State University snapped the streak this week.

Eori, who won Player of the Week honors on March 24, is also setting the pace for the SBU men.

"Cipulli and Eori are playing great right now," said SBU Head Coach John Bryant. "Once their teammates start playing to their capabilities and we get healthier, we are going to be hard to beat."

Bryant is very optimistic about the potential of what the team could accomplish. "We are really good, but we haven't peaked yet. You want to peak in May and we are right on schedule."

Andras Bori, who has been dealing with a quadricep strain the past four weeks, has been playing pain free for the last two days.

"Bori has been trying to compensate for his injury and it has affected his swing. With him healthy and the rest of the team continuing to improve, we will be hard to beat," Bryant said.

If SBU continues to play well, they could capture the top seed in the Division II's North Central Region where they are already ranked number one. Number one seeding would allow SBU to host the first two rounds of the National Championship for the North Central Region in Bolivar.

If SBU advances through the first two rounds, they would then play in the Final 16 in Orlando.

Bryant is already preparing his team for the heat and humidity in Orlando by having them run with winter gear on to simulate the temperatures.

"Last year I did not prepare the team for the weather conditions and it affected the teams play," Bryant said. "This year I'm getting them ready for that situation before we get down there."

Even though SBU did not take the National Championship last year, Coach Bryant thinks his guys can get it done this year.

"It is exciting right now. It is a great situation to be in. Cipulli and Eori are playing great and still getting better and Bori is getting healthier. We are right on schedule."

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