The excitement exists largely because junior Brett Binkley and freshman Mark Rutherford enter the season ranked No.,”

During Steve Rodecap's tenure as head tennis coach at Marquette University, it is hard to say there has been more excitement about the spring season, which begins Saturday against Michigan.

The excitement exists largely because junior Brett Binkley and freshman Mark Rutherford enter the season ranked No. 31 in doubles by the Fila Collegiate Tennis Rankings. The duo was 10-1 in the fall, and they will be setting the tone in doubles play for a team that has high aspirations.

"Doubles in college tennis is very important," assistant coach Raj Gill said. "The team that wins doubles wins (the match) most of the time, and we feel like they're going to win a lot of matches for us."

Binkley understands the attention has been on him and his partner thus far but said the team as a whole has been working hard to prepare for the spring season.

"I think our entire team, including Mark and I, have been working hard to establish Marquette at the national level," Binkley said. "I know that our team has a lot of depth. Any guy from top to bottom can play great matches."

This team is not only deep, it is young. There are five underclassmen on the nine-man roster, and their contributions have been substantial. In the 2005-'06 campaign, Stephen Shao, then a freshman, matched Binkley's team-high mark of 17 victories. Shao also teamed with fellow freshman Trent Hagan to compile a 15-8 doubles record.

The team will be looking to its most youthful star, Rutherford, to provide a boost.

"One thing Mark has going for him is that he is very mature on the court, and that comes from all the international events he played in Canada," Gill said.

Rutherford said the most beneficial part of the tournaments was playing against a diverse pool of competition.

"It's really important in tennis to play against a lot of different people so you learn how to win against different game styles."

Rutherford has used his experience to gain success on the court and has formed a cohesive chemistry with his doubles partner. Besides having the talent, the duo has been able to stay loose on the while playing with high intensity.

"Brett gets super intense, so he's always trying to chest-pump me or push me around to get me fired up with him," Rutherford said. "I'm not afraid of getting hit by the ball in doubles, but I am afraid of what Brett might do to me after we win a big point."

Marquette is hoping to win all the big points this spring, starting Saturday in Ann Arbor, Mich.

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