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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 24, 1988)
Thursday, March 24, 1988/The Battalion/Page 11 ite Sports O’Donovan got help from friends in deciding to play tennis here By Cray Pixley Sports Writer haun O’Donovan is a long way n home. ^■or O’Donovan, the No. 2 seed on tel, the A&M men’s tennis team anti one Hf of A&M’s No. 1 doubles team e " with Steve Kennedy, home is Pieter- ^^■ritzburg, South Africa. V^fc’Donovan's journey from South , Africa to College Station began in s | the spring of 1987 after he received an A&M scholarship. ;vS‘I was looking f or a university that obuld offer a good scholarship, and I 1 a friend on the A&M team who the coach how I played,” O’Do- k'an says. That friend was fellow South Af- in Brent Haygarth who left the A&M men’s team last year to pursue a professional career. H“When coaches recruit foreign players, they don’t know how well the athletes perform so it helped to have Brent tell the coach about me,” BDonovan says. “I guess he (Hay- ^rth) gave a good report.” lO’Donovan left South Africa to enhance his tennis and get an educa- Hm. ■ “After high school in South Africa ^Were isn’t much to do toward tennis ° ■ ce Pt turn professional and that’s ®Hird to do without a lot of contacts ; Mid money,” he says. e BHe says that tennis is important }u mt that an education also is essential case his tennis career turns sour. jl’Donovan is a general studies ma- rMr, but plans to change to building Jfinstruction. ■ 0‘Donovan’s tennis career began .■hen he was 6 years old after his ,Ml Hder sister sought his assistance in 1 j her tennis career. ■ “My sister was interested in tennis .'land she needed someone to hit the ill to," he explains. “We had a court in our backyard, and I would hit the ills back to her.” In addition to tennis, O’Donovan iyed soccer. I “In the eighth grade I had the ance to represent state in tennis and my coach made me choose be- Iveen tennis and soccer,” he says. Shaun O’Donovan O’Donovan pursued tennis and eventually found his way to A&M. Since comipg to A&M, O’Dono van has become a popular player at the Omar Smith Tennis Center and has even acquired a nickname. When he takes the court, support ing shouts of “Odie, Odie” are heard. “I got the nickname when I came to this country,” he explains. “I guess my last name was a little too difficult to learn but then I also get compared to that Garfield character for some reason.” O’Donovan has the tell-tale tan complexion and sun-bleached hair of someone who spends a great deal of time in the sun — a natural for a tennis player. The A&M men’s team is ranked No.24 in the nation, and this season O’Donovan has compiled a strong list of victories in the singles and the doubles. His singles record stands at 9-7 with a doubles slate of 6-6. O’Donovan has an all-court game and says the best facet of his game are his groundstrokes. “I like to mix things up on the court,” he says. “I play the baseline and up close to the net.” But he does admit to setbacks he sometimes experiences. “I have all the shots I need, but I do need to work on concentration and patience,” he says laughingly. “My weakness is definitely concen tration. “Sometimes during a match I start thinking about what I’ll do after the match or what people are doing in the stands.” O’Donovan says he gets back on track by taking longer in between points. In the patience department, O’Donovan says he tries to hit too many winners. “I try to hit winners when I should just sit back and play the point,” he says. O’Donovan’s self-stated weak nesses don’t seem to have injured his doubles play. Earlier this spring, he and partner, Kennedy, leaped onto the Intercollegiate Tennis Coaches Association rankings at the No. 25 position. “I think it’s great that we weren’t even in the rankings and then made it in so high,” he says. The O’Donovan-Kennedy team has been together for a year now. O'Donovan says their success stems from being very familiar with each other’s games. O'Donovan says if he and Ken nedy continue to play well they might play in the NCAA tourna ment. He looks further down the road to doing well in the NCAA to gain American Tennis Players Asso ciation points and perhaps sponsors. Both A I P points and sponsors are essential to players’ professional ca reers. “Even if we didn’t play well in the NCAA this year, we do have two years left,” O'Donovan says. Although he is looking toward a professional tennis career, O'Dono van says he will finish college. “I want to get an education and be the best that I can be in tennis,” he explains. Later this year O’Donovan will work on A&M tennis camps and re turn for a visit to South Africa with doubles partner Kennedy in tow. For the present, O’Donovan will remain a strong No. 2 seed in the singles behind Dean Johnson. Big ‘Mac’ will be back on tennis circuit soon Those John McEnroe rumors are fiying around again. Just when you thought he was back for good, injuries sideline him. Those i n j u r i e s sparked rumors that the Cray Pixley Sports viewpoint way the cuit into television commen tary box where all old tennis stars go. ———— But no, It’s not true! I’m happy to say that McEnroe is not headed to the pasture. McEnroe, who has suffered a back problem for quite awhile, hasn’t given up his racquet but he is recuperating. His recuperation layoff is a good choice on his part because he is not playing in top form. Since taking a break from the circuit, McEnroe has yet to blaze his way through to a grand slam tournament victory and is clearly not the same player who battled with Borg at Wimbledon a few vears back. His recent disappearance from tennis stems from an embarrass ing loss to the Soviet player, An drei Chesnokov, at the Nike In ternational in Japan. The Nike International was only an exhibition match and somewhat of a trauma for McEn roe. McEnroe, who represents Nike, turned in a dismal perfor mance against Chesnokov in Ja pan, and was clearly unhappy about it. After the match he admitted that he would not have played that exhibition if it were not for his commitment to Nike. This performance helps fuel the rumors that McEnroe, at 29, is a faded star. There are those who say McEnroe should never have re turned to the circuit because it had been so nice and tranquil without him. Boring. McEnroe is not the pillar of sportsmanship, but during a five- set match he isn’t boring to watch either. People always point fingers at McEnroe and say, “why can’t you be more calm and polite like the Swedish players?” Sure, I applaud the Swedes with their brilliant play but I do suffer through their faultless court manners. There is rarely any spice to Joakim Nystrom or Mats Wilander’s play. Their de meanor is about as chipper and controversial as an icicle. Pat Cash is about the most flamboyantly argumentative player these days, and he is begin ning to inherit the bad boy crown in McEnroe’s absence. But let me tell you, McEnroe is not just sitting back eating Oreos during his break. Through Nike he is becoming a tennis fashion trend setter. Yes, McEnroe has brought the denim shorts to the tennis circuit — a move that probably won’t make him anymore popular. Oh well. Don’t fear, McEnroe will be will be back on the court soon to play the French Open, Wimble don and the U.S. Open. McEnroe is not dead and bur ied. That mistake was made two years ago in the form of Jimmy Connors, the current pillar of tennis. The old man of tennis at age 35 has since regained past glory in several grand slam tourna ments. Don’t discard McEnroe to early — he definitely has not played his last match. Hostess applications due April 1 Applications for the 1988 Aggie Hostesses will be available from March 26 until April 1 on the ninth floor of Rudder Tower. The Aggie Hostesses serve as offi cial represenatives of Texas A&M. They help recruit prospective stu dent athletes for the football team, act as press box hostesses during football games and perform various community services. Applicants must have a minimum 2.5 grade point average and be clas sified as a junior or senior next fall. “The Aggie Hostesses are a true expression of the 12th Man and of what it means to be a Fightin’ Texas Aggie,” Jackie Sherrill, A&M athletic director and head football coach, said. “These young ladies donate much of their time and effort to ward what we are trying to accompl ish in our program.” A mandatory informational meet ing will be March 30 at 7 p.m. in room 225 of the Memorial Student Center. Applications are due by 12 p.m. April 1. Can Your Apartment Pass this College Quiz? 0 Recently Remodeled [7] Washer-dryer connections [Tj On the shuttle bus route IT/ Pool with Jacuzzi [71 Basketball court [Tj Laundry facility [7] Extracurricular activities 121 Roommate Plan Located off Texas Avenue just west of Kroger. Leasing office open 7 days a week. Affordable rates. * Restrictions apply. Inquire at leasing office. Redstone Aparttn^**^* 1301 Bartholow 696-1848 Lomas Sc Nettleton The nation’s premier mortgage banker will be interviewing on campus April 6, 7, 8, 1988 for two six-month management development programs: Production Branch Interns Training covers all aspects of mortgage loan origination and branch management. Candidates must have strong sales/marketing abilities. Position has potential for growth into a wide range of other financial services. Loan Administration Interns Training covers all aspects of mortgage loan servicing. Candidates must have strong leadership and management abilities. Successful completion of training leads to entry level management positions. Requirements: ■ May graduates ■ Proven leadership and management skills/abilities ■ Strong academic backgrounds in business administration ■ Prefer Finance, Marketing, Real Estate majors ■ Excellent oral/written communication skills. For interviews contact the campus Placement Office or forward a resume to: Lomas & Nettleton Attn: Staff Recruiting 1600 Viceroy Drive • Dallas, TX 75235 Equal Opportunity Employer m/f/v/h/r Principals Only