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MEN’S TENNIS USC undefeated in season’s start Void left by Legat filled by capable upperclassmen BY MATT ROTHENBERG THE GAMECOCK The USC men’s tennis team has begun action and is head ing into conference play this weekend. Carolina- (6-0) has a solid team that should provide stiff competition for its SEC foes. Head coach Kent DeMars, in his 18th season at Carolina, re turns an experienced team with several upperclassmen who should be able to fill the role vacated last spring by Guillaume Legat. David Nelson and Rodrigo Pacheco are the two seniors and co-captains on this year’s squad. Nelson, from Andover, Ben Atkinson is a freshman from England. mass., is play ing primarily in the No. 2 and No. 3 sin gles spots. his USC career as a walk-on, Pacheco is seeing some time at the No. 4 and No. 5 singles spots. The Bolivia native should provide leadership on and off the court for the Gamecocks. Also seeing extensive play in singles are Seth Rose, Marcus Westman, Angelo Niculescu and Ben Atkinson. Rose, a ju nior, had a great fall season and is playing well at the No. 1 po sition. Niculescu, a transfer from South Carolina State, dominated the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference last year with a 25-3 record. Atkinson, a freshman from England, is get ting plenty of playing time at the No. 4-6 seeds. Westman is also seeing time in the middle seeds. In doubles, DeMars has a number of viable options. Both pairs he has placed in the No. 1 position - Atkinson-Nelson and Niculescu-Westman - are undefeated, while the pair of Atkinson-Nelson has fared well in the No. 2 spot. The team of Pacheco-Rose is having a good season so far at the No. 3 spot, but DeMars has a number of pairs who can fill in well in their place. One of the major positives about this team is the depth that DeMars has to work with. Nasir Sherazi, Carl Wermee and Rob Cassidy are all capa ble of big wins when called upon. The Gamecocks will be go ing up against some tough teams in SEC play. The majori ty of conference teams posted records above .500 in 2001. Georgia, Tennessee, LSU and Mississippi are among the teams to beat. Georgia went 28 1 last season and 11-0 in the SEC. One of its top returnees, Matias Boeker, eliminated Legat in the NCAA semifinals last year and went on to win the singles and doubles crowns. Nevertheless, DeMars and his Gamecocks are looking to have a breakout season in 2002. Comments on this story?E-mail gamecocksports@hotmail.com Men’s Tennis Schedule DATE OPPONENT_ TIME March 1Mississippi State2 p.m. March 3Mississippi _1 p.m. March 8_at Louisiana State2 p.m, March 10at-Arkansas 1 p.m. March 15at Vanderbilt 11 a.m. March 17 Kentucky_ 1 p.m. * March 20 Georgia Tech1 p.m. March 24Citadel11 a.m. March 24 College of Charleston ' 2 p.m. March 29Auburn2p.m. March 31Alabama1 p.m. April 5at Georgia5 p.m. April 7atTennessee2 p.m. April 10at Wake Forest3 p.m. - April 14 at Florida 12 p.m, April 16Clemson3:30 p.m. April 18-21 SEC Conference All Day Championship May 10-12 NCAA Championships TBA (Regional Site) May 17-26 NCAA Championships TBA (Final Site) Now Leasing Private Bedrooms for Fall 2002. Roommate Matching Available. Don't Let Someone Else Pick Your Roommate. Look Over Our Roommate Cards and'Find Your own. • Free Shuttle to Campus • 24 Hour Fitness Center w/ Free Weights • Resort Style Pool w/ Hot Tub • Free Tanning Bed • 24 Hour Multimedia Center • 24 Hour Game Room w/ Pool Table • Basketball and Sand Volleyball • Washer and Dryer in Every Apartment • Private Bedrooms with Individual lock & key • 24 Hour Emergency Maintenance • 2 & 4 Bedrooms • Furnished Apartments with Individual Leases f[ BRAND NEW APARTMENT HOMES ]