Under the direction of second-year head coach Jim Hunter, the Nicholls men’s tennis team will travel to Nacogdoches, Texas this weekend to play in the first round of the Southland Conference Tournament. The first round playoff game will mark the first time in four years the men’s tennis team has gone into post-season play.
“I am very proud of the team for working hard and playing well to reach the tournament,” Hunter said. “Unfortunately, the women had some injuries and were not able to make it to the tournament.”
In the first game of post-season play, Nicholls (12-7, 2-4 SLC) will face off against the University of Texas at San Antonio Roadrunners (10-11, 3-3 SLC). UTSA is currently ranked fourth in the SLC standings, one place above Nicholls.
In the regular season, Nicholls beat the Roadrunners in a close 4-3 match March 8.
Nicholls claimed the doubles games with a win at the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds.
Following the doubles events, freshman Radu Ionescu, sophomore Eric Fisher and junior Vlad Popa claimed the first three singles games to claim the Nicholls victory.
Hunter said UTSA is one of the better teams in the conference, and it should be another competitive game.
“When I saw UTSA play us in the regular season, I thought they were the best team in the conference, and I was really pleased that we won. On the following day, they went to Hammond and beat Southeastern and proved they were a solid team,” Hunter said. “We really have to win the doubles matches and three of the four top singles in order to claim the overall win.”
The Colonels are training hard throughout the week in order to make a run at the title.
Each day throughout the week, the Colonels will be doing five drills in the heat to prepare for the weekend games.
The team will also be in a daily play mode following the drills where they will practice against one another to simulate tournament play.
The team will leave Thibodaux today to travel to Nacogdoches.
The players will meet administration of the SLC and discuss several aspects of the conference. They will also practice for one day on the tournament courts before the playoffs begin.
Whether the Colonels win or lose in the first round of the tournament, Nicholls arguably had one of the best seasons in the past decade and should be primed to make another tournament appearance in the fall.
Nicholls will play their first game of the SLC tournament tomorrow at 3 p.m.
Sophomore Phenyo Matong, junior Vlad Popa and sophomore Eric Fisher play against Southeastern April 15 at the Nicholls’ tennis courts. (Albert Ledet III)
