Sundstrom Is Seeded Second After Noah Withdraws at La Quinta

Defending champion Jimmy Connors has been seeded first in the $375,000 Pilot Pen tennis tournament, which begins Monday at the La Quinta Hotel Tennis Club, but Yannick Noah, who reached last year’s final, has withdrawn from the event.

Noah, who recently returned to the tennis circuit after missing most of 1984 with a groin injury, decided to bypass the La Quinta tournament in order spend time at his New York home with his wife, Cecilia, who is expecting the couple’s first child. Noah would have been the tournament’s No. 2 seed.

Replacing Noah at No. 2 is Henrik Sundstrom, a member of Sweden’s 1984 Davis Cup championship team. The rest of the top-seeded players, in order, are Aaron Krickstein, Johan Kriek, Joakim Nystrom, Tomas Smid, Juan Aguilera and Jose Higueras. Higueras won the La Quinta event in 1983.

All of the top eight seeded players received first-round byes in the 56-man draw. Included among Monday’s first-round pairings:

--Scott Davis, a finalist at the $1.8-million Delray Beach tournament, against Stan Smith.

--Guillermo Vilas, 1977 U.S. Open champion, against Hans Schwaier.

--Guy Forget against Thierry Tulasne in a matchup between two of France’s top-ranking players.

--Australian Davis Cup member John Fitzgerald against Hank Pfister.

The tournament will run all week, with a best-of-five sets final scheduled for next Sunday afternoon.