Tennis teams ready to start racqueteering business
Every team starts its season hoping that, in some way, this year will be better than the last one. For some, those goals aren’t realized. But this year’s men’s and women’s tennis teams have a better chance than the average team.
“This year’s [men’s tennis] team will be one of the best ever in USU history,” said senior and team captain Jason Trask. “Ever year that I have been here we have improved and this year we have a lot of talent.”
The men start their season at home against a tough Air Force team on Friday. Although the beginning of their season is going to be tough, the men aren’t complaining, in fact, they are even glad.
“This will be a tough start, but it is a match we can win if we put in our full effort,” said Utah State Head Coach Chris Wright. “These matches will set the tone for the whole year, get us to work harder … get the ball rolling.”
The men will have a chance to be able to see how some of the new faces on the team, like Hung Sooh Park from Seoul, Korea, will perform for USU.
Park, a transfer from BYU-Hawaii, performed well for the Aggies in the preseason. The team is looking to him, as well as others, to help them accomplish things that the team has not in the past.
Assistant coach Steve Peterson said this is the deepest the team has ever been and the coaches, as well as team members have high expectations for the season.
“I think we can basically win any match on our schedule,” he said. “That is the first time we can say that.”
“Our team goal, obviously, is to win conference this year,” said senior Jonah Nelson. “We have a whole new look and a totally new dynamic and will be fun and interesting to watch.”
Trask believes that the team will have better results than ever before.
As does senior and women’s team captain, Richelle Ferguson.
“We have a pretty new team, which is kind of cool,” Ferguson said. “It gives us a fresh new start and a chance to build together. We have real team unity because we are all really close, which is a huge advantage for us.”
The women’s team is looking to build up strong this year with a lot of new faces on their team. While they don’t have quite the expectations that the men do, these Aggies are still looking to do better at conference this year, aiming to win at least two matches at the close of the season.
“We’re aiming for winning,” Ferguson said. “The last two years we have won the first round, and this year we want to win at least two matches.”
On Friday the women head down to BYU for a tough start as well, facing a strong team. However, the team is not intimidated.
“They are always a tough team, they have high rankings, but we shouldn’t be intimidated because that will make a big difference,” Ferguson said. “It will be a good start, show us exactly what we need to work on.”
Peterson said, “This is the deepest our team has ever been. They are all pretty young but have performed well.”
Everybody on the team would like to see more support at their matches.
“Those that haven’t seen [tennis] played at a high level don’t know what they are missing and will enjoy it when they see it,” said Wright. “We’re here and we’re for real.”
“We want recognition, said Trask. “We have been dominating in higher levels, beating teams we’ve never beaten in history and are doing very well. It would be fun to have more crowd support.”
-aedmunds@cc.usu.edu