BIG SKY RELEASE (PDF)

OGDEN, Utah – The Northern Arizona women's tennis team was picked to finish in second place while the NAU men were picked sixth by the conference coaches in the annual Big Sky preseason poll. Sacramento State was a unanimous selection to repeat as both men's and women's conference champion in 2010.

The NAU women garnered 50 points in the voting, finishing a distant second behind Sacramento State's 64 points but ahead of Montana and Montana State, which tied for third with 47 points. The Lumberjack women have finished as runner's up to the Hornets in the Big Sky Championship for the last four seasons, and are hoping 2010 will bring their first Big Sky title since 1999. The team will be led by junior Orsi Golovics, a two-time Big Sky First Team selection currently ranked No. 19 in the Mountain region in singles, and junior Edit Suhajda, who has also earned Big Sky First Team honors the past two seasons.

On the men's side, the young Lumberjack squad was picked to finish in sixth place with 30 points, finishing well ahead of Portland State, Northern Colorado and Idaho State. Despite a 7-18 overall record in 2009, the NAU men went 5-3 in Big Sky play a season ago, finishing in third place in the regular season. The 2010 squad will be led by sophomore Andrew Reiff, a 2009 Big Sky First Team selection as a freshman, and junior David Flodberg, who was an honorable mention selection last season. Of the 10 players on the men's tennis team, nine of them are either freshmen or sophomores, as the squad begins to load up with talented newcomers.

The Lumberjack men open the season at home next Thursday, January 21, hosting Sacramento State at 1 p.m. at Flagstaff Athletic Club. The women begin their season on January 24 against UC Santa Barbara in Tempe.


Women's Big Sky Preseason Poll
(First-Place Votes in Parenthesis)
1. Sacramento State (8)..........................64
2. Northern Arizona ...........................50
T3. Montana State (1).............................47
T3. Montana...........................................47
5. Northern Colorado..............................36
6. Eastern Washington............................31
7. Weber State.......................................25
8. Portland State....................................16
9. Idaho State........................................ 8

Men's Big Sky Preseason Poll
(First-Place Votes in Parenthesis)
1. Sacramento State (8)..........................64
2. Montana State....................................51
3. Eastern Washington (1).......................48
4. Montana.............................................44
5. Weber State.......................................37
6. Northern Arizona............................30
7. Portland State.....................................21
8. Northern Colorado..............................14
9. Idaho State ........................................10