5/13/2004
WASHINGTON, D.C. ? Georgetown?s men?s tennis team ended the 2003-2004 season with a record of 12 wins and 17 losses. The season ended in disheartening fashion as the Hoyas failed to achieve their primary goal for the season, winning a berth in the season-ending BIG EAST Conference Championship.
During the fall 2003 season, Georgetown won two tournaments. The Hoyas won the Baltimore-Washington Challenge with wins over Towson and Loyola. The Georgetown squad then claimed the team title at the Towson Invitational with wins over Monmouth, Villanova, Towson and Delaware. In the 25th Annual D.C. Metropolitan Championship hosted at Georgetown, Hoyas Dennis Cravedi (Bethesda, Md./Georgetown Prep), Scott Faust (Miami, Fla./Ransom Everglades) and Kevin Killeavy (Indian Harbor Beach, Fla./Melbourne Central Catholic) advanced to the quarterfinals. The Hoyas closed the season with a dual match against George Washington, which saw Georgetown take an early lead with an exciting win in the doubles competition, but also saw GW take five of six singles matches to win 5-2. Cravedi and Erik Bildman (Brookline, Mass./Roxbury Latin School) competed in singles and doubles at the ITA Regional Singles and Doubles Championships at Cornell University. The Hoyas advanced to the second round of the doubles competition with a good win against NCAA qualifier Manhattan and Cravedi advanced three rounds in the consolation singles draw.
The spring 2004 season started off on the right track as Georgetown downed Drexel in its first match in January. But nine losses in its next ten matches slowed down the Hoyas, although much of the difficulty was due to the opposition. National #8 Virginia, #11 Virginia Commonwealth and #15 North Carolina all faced the Hoyas as they were showing the entire collegiate tennis community just how tough they truly were. The most difficult loss in the early season came at Rutgers where the Hoyas had good opportunities to claim a BIG EAST win but fell 4-3.
In early March, Georgetown trained in South Florida during the University's spring recess and in its only 2004 competition in the state of Florida fell in a battle to perennial NCAA Division II power Lynn University.
Returning from spring training, the Hoyas got their first BIG EAST win of the season in a 4-3 match against Villanova. The Hoyas then struggled against nationally ranked Virginia Tech and two teams that qualified for the 2004 NCAA Team Championship, Richmond and American.
Georgetown then hosted Boston College in hopes of improving its BIG EAST record and its chance for competing in the Conference Championship. But Boston College was fractionally more resilient in an excruciatingly close fight in which the Eagles won 4-3.
Georgetown rebounded from the disappointing loss to BC with three wins including a 6-1 defeat of BIG EAST rival Connecticut. The final BIG EAST match of the season was a mandatory win in order for the Hoyas to have any chance of reaching the BIG EAST Conference Championship. But St. John's ended Georgetown's hope for a post-season berth with a 7-0 loss. Georgetown closed the season on the road with another tough loss at UMBC.
Freshman Killeavy led the team with 25 combined singles and doubles wins. Classmate and doubles partner Faust contributed 23 singles and doubles wins. Junior Bildman contributed 22 combined victories, including impressive singles wins at #8 Virginia and at #15 North Carolina.
Several Hoyas received recognition and awards for their athletic and academic achievements and their service to the community. Senior captain Cravedi was named the Team Most Valuable Player. Killeavy and Faust were named Doubles Team of the Year as the posted a 5-1 record in BIG EAST play. Bildman, Eddie Carver (Virginia Beach, Va./Norfolk Academy), Eric Conrad (Gloucester, Mass./St. John's Prep), Cravedi, Faust, Killeavy and Alex Wright (Lexington, Mass./University of St. Andrew's (Scotland)) have been nominated for BIG EAST Conference Scholar Athlete honors. Carver is nominated for the ITA National Academic All American award.
Leaving with the graduation of the class of 2004 is Dennis Cravedi. Cravedi, the 2004 Team Most Valuable Player, spent the last two years of his collegiate career playing #1 singles for the Hoyas. He contributed 73 combined singles and doubles wins to the Hoya cause and represented GU in two ITA Regional Championships and two ECAC Team Invitational Championships. He is a nominee for the ITA's Arthur Ashe Sportsmanship and Leadership Award. A three time BIG EAST Scholar Athlete, Cravedi won the Captain's Award as a freshman and was the team captain in 2003-2004. In addition to a full slate of volunteer activities, Cravedi also served on the University's Student-Athlete Leadership Advisory Committee.
The outlook for the 2004-2005 season and beyond should be bright for Georgetown Hoya Tennis. Returning will be captain-elect Bildman, juniors Conrad and Wright and sophomores Faust, Killeavy and Carver. Looking to join the 2004-2005 Hoya Tennis squad from among the top recruits are Scott Maucher from Charleston, S.C., Ted Tywang from Nashville, Tennessee, Etienne Paris from Miami, Florida, Jad Doyle from Yardley, Pennsylvania, Andy Clayton from Salt Lake City, Utah, Justin Barbaro from Ft. Worth, Texas and Faris AbiNader of Bethesda, Maryland.
