It has been a rocky two weeks for the Utah men’s tennis team. Four consecutive away matches against conference heavyweights Stanford, Cal, USC and UCLA resulted in three shutouts and zero wins in conference play for the Utes.
However, the team was confident it could end its conference losing streak and take down No. 62 Washington and No. 56 Oregon here in Salt Lake City over the weekend.
Unfortunately, the weekend left the Utes still looking for that elusive first conference victory. They were unable to repeat the success they had enjoyed earlier in the season and were defeated 4-1 and 4-0 against the Huskies and Ducks respectively at Coach Mike’s Tennis Academy.
The Utes, who won seven of the 10 matches played inside the Eccles Tennis Center this season, began Friday’s match with a decent showing in doubles play but were overcome in the number one and three spots as the Huskies nabbed the first point of the day.
The Utes responded quickly in singles play and won the first sets in the second, fourth, fifth, and sixth positions. Then senior Cedric Willems was defeated in the No. 1 slot (6-1, 6-4), and the Huskies won four of the six singles spots, giving Washington the 2-0 lead.
Trying to turn the momentum back in Utah’s favor, sophomore Parker McGuiness engineered an impressive come-from-behind victory to win the second set 6-4 in the No. 2 position, securing the team’s first point. However, this would be Utah’s only point of the day as a loss at the No. 3 spot, and a devastating three-set defeat in the No. 5 spot marked an end to the day’s competition.
Despite a disappointing result in their home opener, the Utes’ ability to come together in the face of adversity was heartening for head coach Roeland Brateanu.
“We didn’t really do a great job in doubles. We showed up with a little lack of energy,” Brateanu said. “But we showed up as a team in singles and competed very well — that’s what impressed me. How well we came back from a defeat in doubles, and how well we competed in singles as a team.”
Although he was impressed by the strong starts in singles play, Brateanu pointed out that the team would have to improve their ability to close out sets before Sunday’s match against Oregon.
“I think that the kind of theme today was we didn’t really close out sets when we were up quick enough,” Brateanu said. “So we kind of gave the other team a little too much confidence, and that cost us in the long run.”
Similar to Friday’s match, the Utes began their match against the Ducks with a poor start in doubles play, dropping sets in the No. 2 and No. 3 spots, and found themselves down 1-0 against a nationally-ranked conference opponent for the second time in three days.
Unlike on Friday, Utah could not keep up with the Ducks in singles play, as only junior Matt Cowley mustered a win in his match. The Utes were unable to match Friday’s intensity, and Oregon handed the Utes a 4-0 defeat following two-set losses at the fourth, first, and sixth spots.
One major difference was the contrast between the pristine weather during Friday’s match and the strong, cold breeze that impacted play on Sunday. There were countless groans from the audience as balls sailed just out of bounds, and there were just as many frustrated exclamations from players who could not manage to get into a rhythm with their serves.
Redshirt freshman Louis-Philippe Gascon admitted he faced some difficulties associated with the weather conditions but said these issues could be overcome.
“I didn’t play a lot of matches outside. This is my first one outside today. It’s kind of windy — with my serves, it’s a lot different than with being inside,” said Gascon. “I’ll just continue to play points outside with my serve with the returns as well. I’ll just continue to practice every day, and it’s going to help.”
Even with the end of the season in sight, Gascon says the team is going to continue to remain dedicated.
“We’re just going to continue to work hard. These are tough losses, but we need to keep our head up and learn from every tough loss. And we’re going to try to get better and learn from everyone, and next time is going to be better.”
The team will wrap its regular season this Saturday, April 18, against Arizona at Coach Mike’s Tennis Academy. First serve is at 11 a.m.
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