This weekend, the Nittany Lions will host the Penn State Fall Classic at the Sarni Tennis Center, kicking off their season starting today at 3 p.m.

The men's tennis team will play Army and continue playing all weekend from about 9 a.m until 4 in the afternoon. In case of inclement weather, the matches will moved to the Penn State Indoor Center.

Also attending this Classic will be St. Bonaventure, Manhattan and Niagara, all Division I teams, so the competition will be tough. This tournament contains matches played one after the other.

Tennis is more of a spring sport, but the fall is when the players really get a chance to play a lot of matches. Penn State will play in four tournaments this fall such as the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECACs) championships, Intercollegiate Tennis Association Regionals, the Big Ten Singles Championships and the Penn State Fall Classic.

These tournaments will help get the individual players and doubles teams noticed for the spring. The results from these tournaments will go towards regional and national rankings, so the team members are ready to play hard.

Last season, Penn State finished No. 63 in the nation and No. 3 in the Northeast region. It will be tough to rise above last year's 19-8 season after losing two vital seniors, Mark Barry and Malcolm Scatliffe, and also working with a new head coach. Todd Doebler, is making his debut for his head-coaching career today, and cannot wait.

"I'm excited to get out and see what the guys can do this weekend," Doebler said. He also said that the players have been working hard at practice and they are ready to play other schools instead of beating up each other.

Penn State has eight returning players this season and three incoming freshmen. The two senior co-captains are Ryan Berger and Brad Hunter. Berger had a great season last spring and was listed as No. 23 in the Northeast Regional singles rankings. Berger and Hunter have had a lot of experience as doubles partners after regionally placing No. 4 last year. They could be paired together again next season, but say it's too early to tell. Berger has improved in his play and will have to help the team as a senior this year.

"I've taken more [of a] leadership role along with Brad this year, and I want to make the transition as easy as possible to the new coach and the teammates," Berger said.

Also standing out on the team is sophomore Adam Slagter, who teamed with Barry in doubles competition last spring. This year, he will have to step into a more mentor-like role as well. He is helping out the freshmen because it was just last year when he was in their shoes and he knows how much he appreciated it when Barry helped him, Slagter said.