Illini Ranked Fifth in Nation
Duo of Laski/Sontag rated third in the country, Freelove ranked 13th in singles - 12/9/98

Following one of the strongest fall season in school history, the University of Illinois men's tennis team was tied for fifth in the nation in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Fall Rankings. In addition, four singles players and two doubles teams were rated among the nation's best, including two duos in the top 12.

After ending the 1997-98 season ranked 10th in the country, the Illini are tied for fifth with UCLA with 563 votes in the ITA Fall Rankings that came out on Tuesday. Four-time defending NCAA champion Stanford earned the top spot once again, followed by Georgia, Mississippi State and Mississippi. Illinois was the highest ranked Region IV team, followed by Minnesota at No. 23 and Notre Dame at 24th. The Illini were the only Big Ten squad to have four players ranked in singles and two duos ranked in doubles.

In the singles rankings, senior Oliver Freelove (Bromley, England/Seven Oaks) was rated the 13th-best player in the country, the highest position of his career. Freelove, who was ranked 37th in the preseason poll, advanced to the finals of the Region IV Championships and the quarterfinals of the ITA Claycourt Championships this fall.

Three more Illini were rated among the top players in the country as junior Cary Franklin (Atlanta, Ga./St. Pius X) was ranked 52nd. Junior Jeff Laski (Lisle, Ill./Naperville North) made his first ever appearance in the rankings, going from unranked to No. 71 in the country. Senior Gavin Sontag (Aurora, Ohio/Aurora), who stands one win away from tying the school record for singles victories, was rated No. 90.

In doubles, two Illini duos were ranked among the top 12 in the country. The pair of Sontag/Laski was ranked the third-best duo on the country. After being unranked in the pre-season poll, Sontag/Laski upset five ranked duos on the way to the finals of the ITA All-American Championships this fall. The team of Freelove/Franklin climbed to No. 12 in the nation, after earning the No. 16 spot in the pre-season.

The University of Illinois men's tennis team opens the spring season at the Milwaukee Tennis Classic from Jan. 5-10 in Milwaukee, Wis.