The Northwestern men’s tennis team has sprung out of the gates faster than any year since 1989. The Wildcats are 7-1, ranked No. 30 in the nation and, according to coach Paul Torricelli, improving each day.
Why the drastic improvement? Confidence and consistency, the Cats said.
“I know we’re going to play well,” Torricelli said. “I’m very confident in this team’s preparation. They’re very motivated and compete extremely well. They also don’t like to lose.
“Sometimes you catch some teams not quite ready to play. We’ve been ready.”
With their eyes on a new set of goals, the Cats are looking to better their seventh-place finish at last year’s Big Ten championships. They want to make it farther in the NCAA tournament as well after getting bounced in the first round by No. 1 Stanford last season.
A key to NU’s success this year is the fact that everyone from last year’s squad is returning – only this year’s lineup is a bit jumbled.
Taking over the new No. 1 singles spot is sophomore Jackie Jenkins, who said he was shocked to find out about the assignment. Last year Jenkins gained vital experience at the Nos. 3 and 4 singles spots. Playing in such a high position last season, he had the opportunity to square off against upperclassmen, which prepared him for this year’s stiffer competition.
“By Coach giving me this spot, there’s pressure to win every match, (but) you just have to go out there and play,” Jenkins said. “You can’t do anything about it.”
And, at 5-3, he’s already off to a quick start.
Jenkins described his game as more aggressive than it was a year ago. In the offseason he worked on his speed and his serve-and-volley game.
Whereas last year Jenkins was concerned with how his opponent played, he now focuses only on his own game.
“There’s not a match (my teammates and I) play that we don’t believe we can win.” Jenkins said.
The returning upperclassmen – senior Brad Erickson and juniors Joost Hol and Jamie Sahara – will also be an integral part of the team this year.
Erickson, who received All-Big Ten honors last year, teams up with Hol as the No. 1 doubles team. The tandem is currently on a seven-game winning streak and has not dropped a match since the end of January.
Torricelli said he is looking as much to their leadership abilities as anything else, adding that they’ve played with maturity so far this season.
With the return of the upperclassmen and the development of the youngsters, Torricelli said he wants his team to win every Big Ten match this year. Yet he is not focusing solely on NU’s record; rather, he wants his team to maintain its die-hard attitude.
Still, Torricelli balked when asked if his team could beat the nation’s elite.
“I wouldn’t touch that with a 10-foot pole,” he said. “Our goal is to return to the top of the Big Ten and challenge for the championship.”
