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TENNIS TEAMS TAKE THE COURT
from The Mercury 01 30 23
by The Mercury
Men's and women's teams kick off the new year with plans for growth and reinvention
After impressive seasons in 2022, the UTD men’s and women’s tennis teams look to achieve new successes. With games coming up for both teams on Feb. 4 and Feb. 5, Coach Bryan Whitt hopes to start the year off on the right foot.
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The men’s team is first up on the schedule, playing their first game at Mary Hardin-Baylor on Feb. 4, a team they beat 5-0 back in April 2021. Since then, the men’s team has made back-toback playoff appearances and capped off their last season with seven different team members named ASC AllConference players, tied for the highest number in team history. However, with five of those seven players leaving this season, the men’s team hopes to reestablish themselves and develop their young core into a team of new stars. According to Coach Bryan Whitt, the men’s team has a lot of depth, making them a serious contender to win their division and make the postseason. With these high expectations, the team hopes to turn their championship aspirations into a reality, even in spite of the athletes they’ve lost.
“You can’t rep licate,” Whitt said.
“Even if all six of my starters were the exact same from last year, it’s still a different team. All the experiences they had last year makes them who they are, good and bad, for this year ... [This sea son is] a good test ... I think most of our that’s something they want. They don't want to just play matches they can easily win, that’s not fun. It’s about testing yourself and going up against players and teams that matter.”
The women’s team starts their season just after the men’s team, opening at home on Feb. 5 against Tabor. Much like the men’s team, the women’s team found their fair share of individual success last year with six athletes taking ASC All-Conference honors. However, unlike their male counterparts, the women’s team has seen historic team success, winning the last three ASC championships in a row. This success resulted in the Comets ranking #24 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s pre-season national DIII rankings.
