Hovsepian Keeps Lit Torch of Pierce Tennis Patriarch : Program Thriving Under the Guidance of Xanthos Disciple

His flame was not burning as bright or as hot as it once had, so Paul Xanthos passed the torch last year.

The man who had produced men’s tennis championships in 23 of 29 seasons at Pierce College bowed out quietly after his team--ranked No. 2 in the state--was upset in the second round of the Southern California regional.

But Xanthos, 73, knew the program would be in good hands when Pierce hired Aris Hovsepian.

Hovsepian couldn’t crack the lineup for Xanthos when he came to Pierce as a freshman in 1986, but he returned in 1992 as a player--and as a Brahma assistant coach.

“I went out to a practice this year and I saw the players running up and down the stadium bleachers 10 times and my legs hurt,” Xanthos said. “I thought it was great. They’re in great shape.”

Physically and otherwise.

Pierce is ranked second in the state. The Brahmas (21-1) won the Southern California regional with a 5-1 victory over San Diego Grossmont last week. Today, they face No. 1 Los Altos Foothill for the state championship in a match at La Costa Resort and Spa.

Pierce’s only defeat came April 2 in an invitational tournament to Tyler (Tex.), then ranked No. 1 in the country.

“It hasn’t been easy,” Hovsepian said. “But one thing is I didn’t want to disappoint my coach, Paul Xanthos, because he took a chance on me.”

Hovsepian, 27, was the youngest of seven applicants interviewed by Pierce. He had no head-coaching experience, but he did have the recommendation of Xanthos, who finished with a record of 548-103 and next week will be the first junior college coach to be inducted in the ITCA Coaches Hall of Fame.

In his last two seasons at Pierce, Xanthos would look at Hovsepian and have flashbacks. What he saw was a young Paul Xanthos.

“He’s got his own style, but he handles, he prepares and he drills the guys the way I did,” Xanthos said. “Like me, he doesn’t stand for any foolishness.”

Pierce players realized that as soon as they started training under Hovsepian last fall. They spent as much time on the track, in the weight room and in Pierce’s Olympic pool as on the court. Hovsepian’s program of swimming, lifting and running was a radical departure from Xanthos’ regimen, but the players took to it.

“I thought it was very good,” said Philip Leonhardt, Pierce’s No. 4 singles player who is one of three Brahmas to play for both Xanthos and Hovsepian. “It gets too boring to stay on the court three hours a day.

“Aris is really excited and he wants to do everything perfect. He’s trying to give us the edge, physically and mentally. He’s a coach 24 hours a day.

“Filling in for Paul is a big thing. Paul got a little burned out. I don’t mean that in a negative way. He was a very good coach, but it was kind of a daily routine and he kind of lived from the past.”

Xanthos’ success is unparalleled. His legacy includes 23 conference championships--15 in a row--and a 96-match conference winning streak from 1973-87. But in his last seasons, he suffered from heart troubles and clashed with the administration over lack of funding.

“I let up a little bit and started having fun with the guys,” Xanthos said. “Former players would come up to me and say, ‘Boy, you’ve really changed.’ I was strict. Aris is strict.”

As a youth growing up in Tehran, Hovsepian would play nine to 10 hours a day on clay courts. He has brought the same dedication to coaching.

He spent 24 days in Florida in December learning the finer points of the game from former UCLA Coach Glenn Bassett (doubles) and academy gurus Nick Bollettieri (training), Dennis Vandemere (techniques) and Jack Groppel and Jim Loehr (bio-mechanics).

Pierce players have a volunteer chiropractor, Paul Anding, who helps them with both physical and psychological therapy.

Hovsepian continues to push new ideas on his players.

“I use swimming, because it loosens and aligns all your muscles and helps prevent injuries,” Hovsepian said. “I knew about track because I used to run track. Most of (my ideas) came from books. I’ve studied about different energy levels. Maybe it sounds like B.S., but it comes from a lot of reading and learning about the game.”

Hovsepian, like Xanthos, was not a very good player. Coming to the United States as a teen-ager, he played No. 3 singles at Cleveland High as a senior. He didn’t make the ladder at Pierce a year later. But Hovsepian re-emerged at Pierce two years ago and earned the No. 6 singles position at age 25. That’s when Xanthos started grooming him as an assistant coach.

Hovsepian sees much of himself in his players.

“They’re average junior college players,” Hovsepian said. “I wouldn’t say they’re very talented. They work hard for what they have accomplished. They’ve tried to improve their games.”

No. 1 singles player Doug Young has a 29-6 record. No. 2 Jenia Karimov is 29-11, No. 3 Kasper Nielsen is 19-7, No. 4 Leonhardt is 27-5, No. 5 Josh Goodley is 19-4 and No. 6 Ray Kheshvadjian is 22-6.

Young and Leonhardt qualified for the state individual tournament by reaching the semifinals of the regional. The doubles teams of Leonhardt-Nielsen and Young-Karimov also qualified for the state tournament, which will start Friday.

The undercurrent to Pierce’s success--to Hovsepian’s toil and his players’ efforts this season--is a tradition and a high standard that was set by Xanthos 30 years ago.

“I’m lucky enough to be here,” Hovsepian said. “I’m lucky enough to coach a team that Mr. Xanthos has made to be one of the best in California and the Western United States. He’s definitely a legend.

“There’s no way I’m going to disappoint him. I have to do my best. It’s a lot of challenge. It’s a lot of pressure.”