Indiana University Athletics
IU Embracing Tournament-Team Mentality
1/28/2016 3:01:00 PM | Men's Tennis
By: Sam Beishuizen | Twitter
IUHoosiers.com
Indiana men's tennis hasn't shied away from keeping its goal clear and concise: get to the NCAA Tournament.
IU came up just short of qualifying to compete for a national championship last season. The Hoosiers say the frustrations of being on the outside helped fuel a year-long push to qualifying that started almost as quickly as they found out they didn't earn a tournament bid.
Nine months later, Indiana is only beginning to make another run under second-year head coach Jeremy Wurtzman. And although they're just two matches in, they haven't lost sight of the big picture.
"All our matches are going to matter this season," senior Chris Essick said. "They're all big matches. One loss this past week isn't going to make a huge difference. It's the wins that are really going to add up and get us into the tournament—big wins."
Thus reflects the Hoosiers' mindset even heading into week two's matches against VCU and Marquette in Bloomington Saturday. While they're not trying to dwell as much on losses—which they suffered a pair of last weekend—Indiana has simplified the marathon season by focusing on adding resume-boosting wins whenever and however they can.
By the time tournament season comes along, the Hoosiers hope to have already proven themselves.
"We're going to bring it every single day and try to get better as the season goes along," sophomore Raheel Manji said. "If we can accomplish that goal the way we know we can, we'll be there."
Essick and Manji's expectations reflect a confidence on a team that has five seniors.
In the fall, senior Sam Monette took the ITA Ohio Valley Regional singles title and then teamed with fellow senior Daniel Badnarcyzk to win the doubles title. Manji won the Wake Forest Invitational and junior Matthew McCoy advanced to the semifinal at the Big Ten Singles/Doubles Championships.
But the transition from individual to team play comes fast.
"In the fall you're not really relying on anyone else but yourself to win," Wurtzman said. "Now you have to play for something bigger than yourself. Everyone is out there trying to get points, so there's a lot of pressure that goes into that. It's a different type of feel."
Some perform better when teammates are relying on their result while others, particularly younger players, tend to struggle with the transition initially. The quicker players can start playing as a team, Wurtzman said, the better the results.
"What's most important right now is being focused and competing well together," Wurtzman said. "Once they do that, we can start moving forward."
Manji said he expects the transition to come sooner rather than later thanks to a combination of proven experience and a closer bond on the team in Wurtzman's second season. He and his teammates have long spoken about how much stronger the program feels now than it did at this time a year ago, which they hope reflects in the results.
"Our experience should really help us and play a role throughout the season," Essick said. "We're going to need it. Because we know where we're going, but we've got to get there."
IUHoosiers.com
Indiana men's tennis hasn't shied away from keeping its goal clear and concise: get to the NCAA Tournament.
IU came up just short of qualifying to compete for a national championship last season. The Hoosiers say the frustrations of being on the outside helped fuel a year-long push to qualifying that started almost as quickly as they found out they didn't earn a tournament bid.
Nine months later, Indiana is only beginning to make another run under second-year head coach Jeremy Wurtzman. And although they're just two matches in, they haven't lost sight of the big picture.
"All our matches are going to matter this season," senior Chris Essick said. "They're all big matches. One loss this past week isn't going to make a huge difference. It's the wins that are really going to add up and get us into the tournament—big wins."
Thus reflects the Hoosiers' mindset even heading into week two's matches against VCU and Marquette in Bloomington Saturday. While they're not trying to dwell as much on losses—which they suffered a pair of last weekend—Indiana has simplified the marathon season by focusing on adding resume-boosting wins whenever and however they can.
By the time tournament season comes along, the Hoosiers hope to have already proven themselves.
"We're going to bring it every single day and try to get better as the season goes along," sophomore Raheel Manji said. "If we can accomplish that goal the way we know we can, we'll be there."
Essick and Manji's expectations reflect a confidence on a team that has five seniors.
In the fall, senior Sam Monette took the ITA Ohio Valley Regional singles title and then teamed with fellow senior Daniel Badnarcyzk to win the doubles title. Manji won the Wake Forest Invitational and junior Matthew McCoy advanced to the semifinal at the Big Ten Singles/Doubles Championships.
But the transition from individual to team play comes fast.
"In the fall you're not really relying on anyone else but yourself to win," Wurtzman said. "Now you have to play for something bigger than yourself. Everyone is out there trying to get points, so there's a lot of pressure that goes into that. It's a different type of feel."
Some perform better when teammates are relying on their result while others, particularly younger players, tend to struggle with the transition initially. The quicker players can start playing as a team, Wurtzman said, the better the results.
"What's most important right now is being focused and competing well together," Wurtzman said. "Once they do that, we can start moving forward."
Manji said he expects the transition to come sooner rather than later thanks to a combination of proven experience and a closer bond on the team in Wurtzman's second season. He and his teammates have long spoken about how much stronger the program feels now than it did at this time a year ago, which they hope reflects in the results.
"Our experience should really help us and play a role throughout the season," Essick said. "We're going to need it. Because we know where we're going, but we've got to get there."
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