On April 21, the men’s and women’s tennis teams will compete in the Southern Conference tournament.
Last season, the women won the Southern Conference tournament, defeating Samford in the final. This year’s team returned a lot of players from last year, losing three players to graduation.
The men’s team also won the Southern Conference tournament last season, defeating Furman in the final. Like the women’s team, the men returned a majority of last season’s team, losing three players to graduation.
The women’s team will go into the tournament with a 12-5 record and as a No. 2 seed. Though they’ve experienced a coaching change mid-season, the women’s team has stayed on course with many of their losses being close.
Going into the first match against No. 7 seed Wofford, Coach Ricardo Rojas feels confident in his team.
“Everyone has to be at their best, we finished second in the conference,” Rojas said.
Their only conference loss came at the hands of the No. 1 seed Furman.
“We can’t afford to have two players show up, we need everyone to play at their best for us to be successful,” Rojas said.
Leading up to the weekend, Rojas wants his girls to be focused.
“We have upped the intensity this week,” Rojas said. “We have been working on game situations preparing to be ready.”
The men’s team finished 13-7 for the season and went undefeated in the conference, going 7-0.
The men’s team played elite competition early in the season to prepare them for this coming weekend.
Led by senior David Biosca (Sant Fruitos de Bage, Spain), the men go into the tournament as the No. 1 seed, and they will face No. 8 seed Chattanooga.
Coach Rojas’ only concern is his team playing in another environment.
The team, however, went 7-4 on the road, playing more away games than home games this season.
“We have to play to our best ability,” said Rojas.
Leading up to Friday, the men want to clean up simple habits that can help them be successful. They also want to stay healthy, something the team struggled with early in the season.
