MEN'S AND WOMEN'S TENNIS PICKED TO WIN BIG SKY TITLE 1/15/2009 SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Both the Sacramento State men’s and women’s tennis teams were selected to finish first in the Big Sky Conference preseason coaches poll, it was announced today. The Hornet women received all but one of the available first place votes while the men just edged Eastern Washington for the top spot. In addition to seven consecutive Big Sky championships, the women’s team has advanced to the NCAA Tournament each of the last seven years and has won 52 consecutive matches against conference competition dating back to the 2002 season. The women’s team returns six players from last season’s squad, including two-time Big Sky MVP Katrina Zheltova. Joyce Martinez Gutierrez, Luba Schifris and Aileen Tsan will also be back in the lineup after earning honorable mention all-Big Sky honors a season ago. The Hornets received 63 points in the poll and had seven of the nine first-place votes (coaches cannot vote for their own team). Northern Arizona was second with 58 points and was followed in the top five by Montana State (48), Montana (39) and Eastern Washington (37). Sacramento State’s men’s squad produced an 8-0 mark against Big Sky foes during the regular season in 2008 but was upset in the conference tournament finals by Eastern Washington, 4-3. The loss snapped the team’s 10-match winning streak and ended its year with a 16-8 overall record. The Hornets’ top returner is junior Anton Stryhas, who has posted a team-best 42-5 singles dual match record in his two seasons with the team. Stryhas was named the Big Sky MVP last season and was joined on the first team by returners Kiryl Harbatsiuk and Artur Klimenka. Sacramento State tallied 61 total points in the poll to finish one point ahead of EWU. The Hornets received five first-place votes while the Eagles were given the other four. Montana State was third with 48 while Montana (40) and Weber State (36) completed the top five. Both the Sacramento State men and women kick off the 2009 season in the coming week. The women open play on Sunday, Jan. 18, at Pepperdine. The men start on Friday, Jan. 23, at UC Riverside. WOMEN’S PRESEASON POLL 1. Sacramento State (7) - 63 2. Northern Arizona (2) - 58 3. Montana State - 48 4. Montana - 39 5. Eastern Washington - 37 6. Northern Colorado - 30 7. Weber State - 23 8. Portland State - 18 9. Idaho State - 8 MEN’S PRESEASON POLL 1. Sacramento State (5) - 61 2. Eastern Washington (2) – 60 3. Montana State - 48 4. Montana - 40 5. Weber State - 36 6. Northern Arizona - 34 7. Northern Colorado - 19 8. Portland State - 16 9. Idaho State - 10