Hoosiers look to make waves in Midwest Regional tournament

When redshirt freshman Phillip Eilers joined the IU men’s tennis team last January, then-head coach Ken Hydinger knew he had brought in a special player. He was excited about Eilers and fellow newcomer Lachlan Ferguson and their potential to lead the Hoosiers. Last month, new head coach Randy Bloemendaal said Eilers and Ferguson would be “impact players.”\nOn Friday, Eilers will get a chance to prove himself worthy of the praise as he and seniors Thomas Richter and Dara McLoughlin will head north to Minneapolis for the ITA Midwest Regional at Minnesota’s Baseline Tennis Center. Eilers said he is excited for the event and hopes to improve his game while there.\n“I hope I can prove myself (and) get even more wins,” Eilers said. “I’m looking forward (to) a good tournament.”\nEilers made his debut three weeks ago at the Polo Ralph Lauren All-American Tennis Championships in Tulsa, Okla. \nEilers was the ninth seed in the Prequalifier, where he won three straight-set matches to advance to the Qualifier. In the first match of the Qualifier, Eilers knocked off the 14th seed and No. 62 player in the country, Roy Sichel of Charlotte, 6-4, 6-1. In the second round, however, Eilers fell 6-1, 6-4 to the 94th-ranked player in the country, Dalibor Pavic of Drake University. \nBloemendaal said he is pleased with how Eilers has played so far, but since Eilers has not won any championships, he is not getting too excited about the former Top 10 junior player from Germany. Nevertheless, his results at the All-American tournament seem to back up at least some of the hype. \nBloemendaal said the singles event will be a 64-player draw, consisting of men from Big Ten schools, Louisville, Notre Dame and top mid-major competition. He said he expects Eilers and Richter to be seeded, while there is an outside chance for McLoughlin. \nRichter, who entered the season as the likely No. 1 player for the Hoosiers, had a setback at the All-American event. Despite being the fourth seed in the Qualifier, Richter fell in the first round to Wake Forest’s Steven Forman 6-3, 6-4. \nAlthough he won a consolation match against the NCAA’s 53rd-ranked player from LSU, the 51st-ranked Richter was obviously let down. But he’s optimistic about the Midwest Regional this weekend.\n“I was a bit disappointed with how I played,” Richter said. “(I) didn’t expect to lose the first match, but I’m looking forward to the Minnesota tournament. I’m trying to improve ... just trying to keep the ball in and play more balls.”\nWhile Richter was in the lineup for most of last spring’s competition, this tournament will mark the first time Eilers will go up against Big Ten competition.\n“Since I’m new at college, I don’t know my opponents,” Eilers said. “(It will be) good to get my first view at them, to play against them, to get more experience against them and maybe learn some tricks on how to play against them in the spring.”\nRichter, meanwhile, is familiar with much of the competition and has plans to win it all.\n“Of course, if you go to a tournament you want to win the tournament,” Richter said. “I’m planning on winning the tournament.”