UNLV’s Schneiter to play in men’s tourney

Victoria Sun

Friday, May 3, 2002 | 10:12 a.m.

UNLV men's tennis player Thomas Schneiter already has beaten the No. 1 ranked player in the country.

Now he'll get an opportunity to see if he can win an NCAA Singles Championship.

Schneiter, a senior from Worb, Switzerland, earned UNLV's only bid to the NCAA singles tournament that will be played at Texas A&M in College Station, Texas, May 22-27.

"I'm looking forward to being in the draw with the 64 best players," Schneiter said. "I've never made it before so it should be a good experience.

"After beating (Al Garland of Pepperdine), now I know I can beat anyone and I'm not afraid to play any guys."

Schneiter transferred to UNLV two years ago after playing two years at Oregon.

As a team, the Ducks lost in the first round of the NCAA team championships his sophomore season. This will be Schneiter's first trip to the NCAA Singles Championship.

Schneiter, ranked 62nd, went 22-7 and was selected to the All-MWC team for the second consecutive season.

Growing up in Switzerland, Schneiter was primarily a clay-court specialist, but he has learned to adapt his game to the hard courts.