Quakers host tennis ,lassic

Penn will face thePenn will face thecountry's elitePenn will face thecountry's eliteplayers at tourney Once a year, many of the tennis elite from across the country head to Philadelphia to play in one of the most prestigious men's tennis tournaments of the year -- the Penn Conference Classic. The tournament, which has been hosted by the Quakers for the last five years, will be played this weekend at the Levy Tennis Pavilion beginning at 9 a.m. today. The Penn Conference Classic, unlike the team ECAC Championships a couple weeks ago, is an individual tournament with a field of 34 singles players and 16 doubles teams. The top two or three players from several of the best tennis programs in the country will compete along with 12 players from the Penn team. "The draw includes players from all over the world, and the tournament is one of the most competitive athletic events held a Penn during the year," Penn coach Gene Miller said. There will be teams from five of the eight regions around the country, including Virginia, Miami, South Alabama, Penn State, Ohio State and Ivy League rivals Harvard, Princeton and Dartmouth. "The field just gets stronger and stronger each year," Miller said. "This year, there are six players that are ranked in the top 100 in the country." The Quakers have been very successful in individual tournaments this year, with the top two singles players, sophomore Udi Kish and junior Marc Fisicaro posting excellent results. Kish won the Princeton Invitational three weeks ago beating the No. 15 ranked player in the country, and Fisicaro reached the semifinals of the ITA Satellite Tournament in Baltimore and the quarterfinals of the Princeton Invitational. This weekend, Kish and Fisicaro have a chance to continue their strong seasons on their home court. Since the Quakers host the tournament, the rest of the team will also have an opportunity to participate against stiff competition. "This tournament is really good because our players get exposed to top-quality competition that they may face later on in team matches," Miller said. After the Penn Conference Classic, the Quakers will have a break in action until Nov. 7 when they play at Princeton in the ITA Rolex Regional.