April 16, 2003
FAIRFAX, Va. - George Mason's men's and women's tennis teams will take part in the Colonial Athletic Association Tennis Championships, Thursday-Sunday, April 17-20, as part of the 2003 CAA Spring Sports Festival, at Byrd Park and the Thalhimer Tennis Center on the campus of Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, VA.
The tournament includes three men's and three women's teams that are ranked among the top 75 in the latest Omni Hotels Collegiate Tennis Rankings, as well as 15 individuals who are ranked among either the top 125 collegiate singles' players or the top 60 doubles' teams.
The George Mason men are seeded 10th in the tournament, after sporting a 4-11 overall mark and 0-6 conference slate. Mason will be led by junior Tito Ballester (Lima, Peru) who has a 14-9 overall singles record, playing primarily at the No. 1 position. Ballester has really been on a roll lately, having won six of his last nine matches. Freshman Stephan Dufils (Paris, France), who plays at #3, is 10-10 overall and has been victorious in three of his final four matches. Sophomore Tim Bainton (Chobham Surrey, UK) is 9-10 on the season at No. 2. He has won two of his last three contests. The number 1 doubles tandem of Ballester and Dufils is 8-9.
On the women's side, the Patriots are seeded eighth in the tournament with an overall record of 4-13 and a 1-7 mark in the conference. Senior Dinali DeSilva (Negombo, Sri Lanka), who has won three of her last five matches, will lead the charge for Mason, playing at the No. 1 position with a 7-17 overall mark. Sophomore Katie Sloper (Alexandria, VA/Bishop Ireton) will also provide some punch to the Patriot lineup at the No. 3 and No. 4 slots. Freshmen Jenn Dektas (Maineville, OH/Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy) and Kelly Melichar (Burk, VA/Lake Braddock) both have six singles victories this season. Dektas will see action at No. 2, while Melichar will play either the No. 3 or No. 4 position. Dektas and DeSilva lead in doubles with a 6-8 record at #1.
The Patriot men will face seventh-seeded Delaware Thursday at 11:00 a.m. at the Thalhimer Tennis Center. The Fightin' Blue Hens edged Mason, 4-3, on March 22 in Newark. Mason's women will tackle No. 9 seed Hofstra Thursday at 1:30 p.m. at Byrd Park. The Patriots defeated Hofstra, 4-3, on March 23 in Hempstead.
For continuing coverage of the 2003 CAA Championships, please visit the CAA website at www.caasports.com.
