Utah State tennis remains undefeated in the Mountain West
Utah State men’s tennis continued their winning ways Sunday versus Fresno State, defeating the Bulldogs 4-0. The Aggies record now stands at 20-6, with a 5-0 record in Mountain West play.
“It wasn’t flashy, and it wasn’t super pretty,” said USU head coach Clancy Shields. “We talked about just being consistent and doing things we can control. It’s very clinical, the guys just get to work and do what they need to do. It was a very solid performance.”
Utah State faced opposition early in their doubles matchup, but the tandem of junior Jack Swindells and freshman Jonas Maier were able to battle back and win their match 7-6.
“I talked to Jack (Swindells) and he said ‘Hey, we’re going to win this,’” Maier said. “We just believed we were going to win it and we did, so I’m pretty happy.”
Maier also played well in his singles match, defeating Fresno State’s Mantas Bugailiskis in straight sets at the No. 2 spot, 6-4, 6-1.
“Today and Friday was the first time that my opponent didn’t break me,” Maier said. “I was happy with my serve, and I was pretty solid from the baseline.”
This was a unique match for coach Shields, who faced his brother and former coach, Luke Shields. Luke Shields is in his first year coaching Fresno State.
“He stayed over at my house last night, so it was a brotherhood thing last night, but this morning, we were ready to battle each other,” Clancy Shields said. “Definitely in the early moments it was very competitive.”
After the match, the two brothers found each other to talk and discuss the match. Clancy had high praise for the new coach of Fresno State.
“They’re going to be one of the top teams in the conference next year,” Shields said. “I know it. He’s a really good coach. He was my coach — I know how good he is, and he’s going to do a really good job.”
After battling food poisoning this week, USU freshman Romai Ugarte came through with a solid performance. He defeated Fresno State’s Jakob Keppelmann in the No. 6 spot, 6-1, 6-1.
“It’s always good to give the team a point,” Ugarte said. “Right after I finished my match, Luis (Lopez) finished his, so it released all the tension. We wanted to win so badly. We did a very good job against a very good opponent. Having your teammates there when you’re not that well, I think that’s awesome.”
The win for USU means they are able to hold onto the top spot in the Mountain West with only two matches to go in the regular season. Although it’s exciting for Aggies, it is business as usual for them as they have their sights even higher than a regular season title.
“The eye is on the prize,” Clancy Shields said. “We’ve beaten the best teams in the conference and beaten some good teams nationally. There’s no sense of ‘We’re kind of lucky to be here.’ We belong. This stuff in April is just the cherry on top for the work we put in August, September, and October. They’ve earned it.”
The Aggies are back in action on Friday when they play UNLV at home for their final home match of the season at 11 a.m. The location will be determined by the weather.
“It’s a great team, and I love playing for it,” Maier said. “I love every second I’m on the court and I hope that we can keep it rolling and win the Mountain West Conference. That’s our goal.”
— dawson.oler@gmail.com
Twitter: @DawsonOler