WALLA WALLA, Wash. -- Phalkun Mam, a Whitman College junior from Salem, Ore., has been named Northwest Conference Player of the Week for men's tennis.
Mam was a key contributor last weekend as Whitman ran its NWC record to 6-0 with victories over Linfield and Pacific. Mam posted a 6-3, 6-2 victory at No. 2 singles in the Linfield match and then moved up to No. 1 singles for a 6-3, 6-1 win against Pacific.
Mam and his doubles partner, junior Steven Ly, won twice at No. 1 doubles. They rolled to an 8-2 win in the Linfield match and shut out their Pacific opponents 8-0.
Mam, who has played all but one of his singles matches in the No. 2 slot, is now 7-2 on the season in singles play. He and Ly are 7-2 in doubles play.
The Missionary men's team is off to an 8-2 start this season, including conference matches. Their only losses came at the hands of Lewis-Clark State, a perennial NAIA tennis powerhouse, and the University of Portland, an NCAA Div. I team. Early in the season, Whitman scored victories over two NCAA Div. I schools, Gonzaga and the University of Idaho.
Mam's only losses so far this season, in both singles and doubles, came against Lewis-Clark State and Portland.
This is Mam's second NWC Player of the Week award. He was named a co-winner of the award midway during his freshman season, when he won four times in singles and twice in doubles during a one-week span.
Whitman resumes NWC play this Saturday with a pair of tough road matches in Tacoma, Wash. The Missionaries play Saturday morning at nationally ranked Pacific Lutheran. Later in the day, Whitman plays at Puget Sound.
Dave Holden, Whitman Sports Information, (509) 527-5902
Email: holden@whitman.edu