Men's & Women's Media Guide - UMKC Athletics

T E N N I S4The NewcomersCoach Hale welcomes a total of fivenewcomers to the mix in 2009, whichincludes a pair of players with collegiateexperience in Bret Berryman andZachary Alholm. The Kangaroos alsohave a talented trio of high school playersthat will compete for playing timethis season.Berryman comes to Kansas City afterplaying two seasons at Ball State in theMid-American Conference. As a freshman,the Blue Springs, Mo., native posteda perfect 5-0 mark in league play,which led to him being named the MACFreshman of the Year. Last season, hewent 9-9 at the No. 3 line and 8-5 indoubles at the No. 2 position.“Bret was one of the top rated athletesin this area as a senior, and he gaineda ton of experience at Ball State,” saidHale. “We’re looking for Bret to continueto step up his game now that he’ll beplaying before a home crowd.”Alholm joins the Kangaroos from acrosstown after playing two seasons at JohnsonCounty Community College. Lastseason, the Leawood, Kan., native wasa semifinalist at the No. 3 position atthe JUCO National Tournament.“Zachary is a junior college transferwho gained some great experience atone of the best JUCO’s in the nation,”said Hale. “He is also one of the hardestworkers on our team that will comein and compete for playing time thisseason.”Gustavo Guerin and Nick Hayes join theKangaroos after having successful prepcareers. Guerin was a top-five playerin Sao Paulo, Brazil, as an 18-year old,while Hayes was a three-time first teamall-conference selection at Blue SpringsSouth High School, where he posted a46-7 singles record and a 45-10 doublesmark.“Gustavo is the type of player that youwould hate to have to play, as he is aquick, consistent player that battles forevery point in every match,” said Hale.“Nick, meanwhile, is one of the hardestworkers that we have, as he pusheshimself to improve his game. I amlooking forward to seeing how good of aplayer he can be at UMKC.”Patrick Tooey rounds out the group ofnewcomers for the squad, as he joinedthe team this fall as a walk-on. ThePeculiar, Mo., native prepped at RockhurstHigh School, where he helped theHawks to the 2007 Class 1A team title.“Patrick is a player that has a greatamount of potential,” said Hale. “Hejoins our team with a lot of experienceafter winning the state doublestitle in 2007.”The ScheduleThe Kangaroos will play a difficult19-match schedule in2009 that will feature contestsagainst nationally-recognizedfoes like UNLV, Arkansas andNebraska. The squad willplay all but three matcheson the season away fromKansas City.“We are excited to play avery challenging schedulein 2009,” said Hale.“I made sure the competitionlevel was high early in the seasonbecause I wanted to make surewe had the opportunity to build ourmental toughness for conference play.Our team will be pushed early in theyear, which will prepare us for SummitLeague play in March.”UMKC will open league play on March27-28 at a league cluster in Tulsa, Okla.,where it will face off against IUPUI,Western Illinois and IPFW. The secondleague cluster will then take place onApril 9-11 in Fort Wayne, Ind., againstOral Roberts, South Dakota State andCentenary.The 2009 Summit League Championshipwill be held on April 24-25 in FortWayne, Ind. The top four seeds fromthe regular season will advance to theChampionship to play for a berth intothe NCAA Tournament.Patrick Smith junior returnee