The University of Mississippi Athletics
SPOTLIGHT: Rebel Duo Leaves It All On The Line
3/31/2011 | Men's Tennis
March 31, 2011
By Kim Ling
Associate Media Relations Director
To be a successful team, you have to have excellent leadership. For the Ole Miss men's tennis team it starts at the top with seniors Kalle Norberg and Tucker Vorster. One is known as the team's "Banker", because he's as good as money in the bank. The other nicknamed "Dragon", is the heart and soul of the team. This weekend will mark the final regular season homestand for the outstanding duo.
In their careers here at Ole Miss the duo has been instrumental in claiming an overall SEC Championship, back-to-back SEC Tournament titles and winning the SEC West Championship each of their years. The list of accomplishments also includes three trips to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen and two NCAA Elite Eight appearances.
As a freshman in 2007, Norberg put the rest of the SEC on notice with his impressive debut and became an instant fan favorite for his tenacity on the court. Norberg went 22-2 in dual matches and 8-1 in the SEC on his way to earning All-SEC honors that year.
"The whole system, practicing, going to school, playing for a team were all the biggest adjustments," Norberg said of his arrival to Oxford and the United States. "My teammates were great. We all became friends on and off the court. They really took care of me and I loved it from day one."
Norberg's junior year will go down as one of the best in recent memory at Ole Miss and probably ranks as the best season individually for the Uppsala, Sweden native.
During that 2009 season, he helped lead the Rebels to the overall SEC Championship, the SEC Tournament Championship and the NCAA Elite Eight. Norberg was the only player in the SEC to go undefeated in league play and earned SEC Tournament MVP honors.
"I think the most important thing that year was the way that everyone played and how we fought all year. We only lost two matches that year up until the NCAAs," Norberg said when asked about the 2009 SEC Tournament MVP award. When I think back on that year, we went undefeated in the SEC and that's tough to do. To beat Georgia, Tennessee and Florida in the same is a great effort."
Norberg has been a consistent presence for the Rebels during his career. He owns an 81-18 career record, including 63-8 in dual matches and boasts an even more impressive 27-4 mark in SEC matches.
"(Kalle's) always been a team player," head coach Billy Chadwick said. "When a team-match is on the line that's when Kalle is at his best, and that's reflective in his record. He doesn't lose many matches."
Norberg missed all of last season with a back injury and redshirted. This year he has had issues with his foot. Despite the injuries, Norberg says he doesn't have any regrets as his career comes to a close.
"I am in my fifth year now and I've enjoyed every semester. It's going to come to an end soon, and I want to go out with the Rebels on top."
Vorster's career with the Rebels began in 2008 when he went 10-2 in doubles as a freshman to help lead the Rebels to the SEC Tournament Championship, the NCAA Elite Eight and the SEC West Championship.
As a sophomore in 2009, Vorster teamed with NCAA Champion Devin Britton for a 15-5 doubles record as the team won the overall SEC Championship and repeated as SEC Tournament Champions on their way to the NCAA Elite Eight yet again.
Last year Vorster stepped up to be a major contributor in singles and doubles for a young Rebel squad. He earned All-SEC honors while playing No. 2 singles. Playing with three freshmen in the lineup, Vorster helped lead the Rebels to their ninth consecutive SEC West Championship and their 17th straight NCAA appearance.
This past fall, Vorster won the ITA Southern Regional Championship and enters his final homestand with a 4-1 record in the SEC. He won a big match at Florida to help the Rebels defeat the Gators and remain in the hunt for the SEC Championship.
Vorster has also become a fan favorite with the passion and energy he brings to the court.
"Tucker plays with great emotion and has the ability to ignite the team ... this has contributed in a big way to our success," Chadwick said.
"I didn't decide on Ole Miss until late in the recruiting process," Vorster said. Coach Chadwick did a great job showing a lot of interest in me and never backed down. After a careful look at the history of the tennis program and their impressive results through the years, I ended up deciding Ole Miss was the place for me. The teammates and friends that I've made it's been an incredible experience. I couldn't have made a better choice."
This senior duo would like to go out as champions yet again. They both know that if they want to grab some more hardware, this weekend's matches against Georgia and Tennessee are huge.
"One of our goals is to host a [NCAA] regional. To do that, we need to win this weekend," Norberg said. "If we win this weekend, then we are still in the race for the SEC Championship."
"It's been a great experience, playing under Coach Chadwick and Coach (Toby) Hansson. Hopefully we can finish the season strong and turn it into a really special year," Vorster echoed.
Norberg will graduate in May with a degree in Hospitality Management and then he'll contemplate his future without tennis.
"With the way my health has been the last two years, playing professionally is probably out of the question," Norberg said. He laughed and said "I will probably play a little golf. I'm just enjoying my last semester and I'll think about that later."
Vorster will earn his degree in Psychology in December and plans to try and play professionally.
For now though, the Rebel duo is concentrating on the stretch run in the SEC and aiming to end their careers on a championship note.
