North Carolina State University Athletics
Cavaday, Welte Clinch Spots in ITA All-America Qualifying Draw
9/20/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Sept. 20, 2005
RALEIGH, N.C. - Sophomore Nick Cavaday and freshman Chris Welte have both officially clinched spots to compete in the singles qualifying draw at the Polo Ralph Lauren Men's All-American Championship in Tulsa, Okla., Friday, Sept. 30 through Sunday, Oct. 9. In addition, the Pack duo has also sealed a spot in doubles action at the tournament. The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) event stands as one of the three major tournaments in college tennis, making up the Collegiate Grand Slam along with the National Indoor and NCAA tournaments.
Based on a solid freshman year in Wolfpack red, in addition to his No. 65 national ITA preseason ranking this season, Cavaday was an easy choice for selection into the tournament field. Welte, however, stands as even more of an impressive addition considering the fact that he was selected for competition based solely on his junior tennis career. That's an accomplishment that not many collegiate tennis players can take credit for.
This past weekend Cavaday took the Flight A1 singles championship at the Residence Inn North Wolfpack Invitational hosted by N.C. State. Welte finished second in Flight A2, falling to senior teammate Val Banada.
"To have both of these young men invited to a prestigious tournament like this, it's very rewarding," said head coach Jon Choboy. "It really speaks well for the kind of improvement that this program is experiencing right now as we continue to grow by leaps and bounds. Nick had a great freshman season and we are looking for him to really turn another page in his career this year. At the same time, it's remarkable for a true freshman like Chris to be invited to this event. It let's people know how good of a cast we are beginning to assemble in Raleigh."
A native of London, England, Cavaday finished a phenomenal freshman season ranked No. 108 nationally by the ITA. During his first spring season in Raleigh, Cavaday posted a .500 record in ACC play, while going 14-9 in singles action and 11-12 in doubles work. Cavaday, who chose NC State over Illinois and Virginia, enjoyed a solid prep career before joining the Wolfpack. He defeated the former No. 7 junior player in the world, David Brewer, before falling to the world's No. 1 junior player, Gael Monfils before coming to college. In 2004, Cavaday played No. 2 singles for the Kent County Junior cup team that won a national championship, and he also reached the quarterfinals at the Sutton and Oxford British Tour and won a doubles tournament in the Bangladeshi Grade 3 ITF.
Welte, of Moylan, Pa., enters his first collegiate season after finishing his prep career with a No. 1 ranking in the USTA Middle-States Section. Welte earned his first professional points in doubles play on the USTA Pro Circuit and competed in multiple futures events all over the United States during high school. Welte also took down No. 1 seed Mykyta Kryvonos, a professional player on the USTA circuit, in the round of 64 at the 2005 USTA Clay Court Championships and twice competed in the doubles championship at the USTA Clay Court Championships, winning the title in 2003.
