By MAYAN PAZ
Tiger Media Network
On a warm and windy Tuesday afternoon, Fort Hays State University tennis hosted its first tennis tournament of the season, as the Tigers faced Hastings College (NAIA). The FHSU players showed dominance and control throughout the entire day, exhibiting superiority over the visitors, and finished the day with a 3-0 win in the doubles matches (which counts for one win in the tournament) and 6-0 in the singles tournament.
Over the last weekend, the team traveled to Colorado and came back disappointed with a record of two wins versus five losses. Head coach Brian Flax said that it was good to come back to winning form after the less-than-average quality that the team showed over the weekend.
“We were performing at mid-level at best in Colorado, and it’s good to show dominance here and to get back our normal play level,” Flax said.
While most games ended fairly quickly with Tiger wins, the No. 2 clash was the highlight of the afternoon, as FHSU freshman Suzana Faucz battled Victoria Harris for a game that lasted long past any other. As players from both teams slowly finished their respective matches, they started gathering around the central battle of the day, supporting their teammates and joining the crowd that gathered for this one final match and creating a competitive atmosphere. After a hard-fought battle that showed the best tennis level of the day, Faucz came on top with the win for the Tigers, winning 7-5, 7(7)-6(4).
As this match went on, Grace Unruh, a junior from Topeka, won her match against Hasting’s No. 4 player 6-0, 6-1. She spoke about the team’s atmosphere after the weekend in Colorado, and trying to rebound while facing an NAIA school.
“We are maintaining a really high team spirit, and it helps that we are running together for the second year in a row, and we know how to work together,” Unruh said. “I’m happy that although we had a disappointing weekend we came back strong today. It’s not easy to play a team that we are much better than without being complacent, but we tried to focus on cleaning our game from mistakes and just play our best.”
This weekend, the Tigers are headed to Edmond, Oklahoma, to play the ITA Fall Central Regionals. This tournament allows FHSU to face some of the best teams in the nation and will be a substantial opportunity for them to show that they can handle the pressure of playing at the highest level.
“We are excited for the opportunity to play in a big tournament,” Unruh said.
The Tigers will play in the three-day tournament from Friday to Sunday in Edmond. The team will face some tough challenges, but after successful preparation, they are ready to face the opportunity to exhibit their skill against opponents from across the nation.
“This is a real opportunity for us to face a tough competition, but we are ready for it, and the players are well prepared for those challenges,” Flax said. “We are taking our top five players for that tournament, as it is more exclusive, and we hope to come back with some wins under our belt that would show our ability to compete at that level.”