University of Virginia Library

Burris Hopeful Of
Better Net Season

By Tom Sansonetti

With five out of the first six
players returning, Coach Gordon
Burris expects Virginia's tennis
team to take another step on the
path to becoming a future tennis
power.

However, the schedule for the
coming year will again be
formidable. Annual ACC powers,
UNC and USC will be joined by
Clemson and Maryland this spring
as the teams to beat.

Outside the conference, Williams
and VPI, the latter now with their
entire team on scholarship, pose
tough competition.

Heading the list of returning
fuzzbaers is Captain Mike
Eikenberry. The tall
Fourth year man had a respectable
summer playing in a majority of the
Virginia tournaments.

Jeff Podesta, Andy Scheinman,
Bob Kain, and Biff Cooper
complete the list of returning
lettermen.

Scheinman along with
Eikenberry played in the National
Intercollegiates in Corpus Christi
the second week in June. Together
they managed to scrape up enough
points by the end of the tourney to
push Virginia to the 33rd position
in the country.

Coach Burris is definitely
counting on first year man John
Mertz from Dallas, Texas to fill the
spot vacated by Randy Herring's
graduation. He was nationally
ranked in the 16 and under.

Another first year man Coach
Burris has high hopes for is Doug
Waterman. A New Jersey native,
Waterman did not lose a match
playing at the number two slot for
his New Jersey prep school.

The prospects for a big season,
however, lie on the chances of John
Winter becoming eligible for
competition.

Winter, a good singles player,
really stands out in doubles.
Sporting a terrific overhead, Winter,
teaming with Eikenberry, won the
Virginia-Carolina Invitational held
in Richmond in July against
top-flight competition.