Freshmen Lead the Wav c. Bisons Earn Bid to Nationals Although the tennis team had enjoyed its share of success for many years, the team faced a tough schedule in 1993 w ith little experience or leadership to fall back on. Laden with freshman talent and featuring no player beyond his sophomore year, the Bisons waded into the new season warily. After opening with an impressive 8-1 victory over the University of Missouri, Coach David Elliott knew he had a talented group. When the final season stats were in, the Bisons were co-champions of the AIC and received a bid to the NAIA nationals . Their 21-2 record allowed them a share of the conference title with Ouachita, and a number 19 ranking in the final NAIA poll. Credit for their success was distributed throughout the team. Diego Perez, Ruben Gonzalez, Leoncio Dominguez and Ignacio Ruiz were all named to the All-AIC team. The Bisons placed these few and two others, Juan Domingues and Eduardo Giralt, on the All-District squad. The team's top player for the season, Ignacio Ruiz , was the district singles champ. Coach Elliott had nothing but praise for his team. "This was one of our best seasons since I've been connected with the tennis program. It was surprisingly good, because of our youth and inexperience. But we grew up over the year and our team chemistry was great. " - Tim Stanley SEASON AT A GLANCE Hendrix 9-0 AC 9-0 UCA 9-0 UCA 9-0 AC 9-0 HSU 9-0 ATU 8-1 OBU 6-3 Oscar Rivas practices his backhand. This season proved to be one of the best for the Bisons. Photo by Michael Bass. Ozarks 9-0 Ozarks 9-0 UAM 9-0 OBU 4-5 Coach Elliott and Diego Perez discuss strategy between games. Elliott was named AJC coach of the year. Photo by Michael Bass. Men's Tennis 4 -----~29 Sports
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