IU enters home stretch of Big Ten competition

After collecting a pair of road victories that launched them back into contention for a top-four finish in the Big Ten, the Hoosiers turn their attention this weekend toward two conference matchups. With only a quartet of conference clashes remaining and the postseason rapidly approaching, the margin of error for the Cream and Crimson is quickly dwindling.

But while that harsh reality is not lost on him, IU Coach Randy Bloemendaal said he maintains that his team is well positioned for a late-season charge.   

“I’m very excited about the way the opportunities are coming at us here at the end,” Bloemendaal said. “If we do well, we’re going to make a heck of a run. It’s taken us a little bit of time — longer than I thought it would — to kind of figure out which direction we’re destined to go after, but I think the guys are really starting to believe.”

The drive for a favorable seed in the Big Ten tournament begins in earnest this weekend as the Hoosiers confront No. 40 Minnesota and Wisconsin, who together comprise half of the conference foes IU has yet to meet in battle.

Though a meeting with the struggling Badgers (9-10, 1-6), who will be seeking a season-salvaging win, looms at noon Sunday, it is Saturday’s contest with the Golden Gophers (9-6, 4-3) at the same hour that will have a far greater bearing on the conference race. Also rounding out the weekend’s action will be a brief step out of Big Ten play for a Sunday evening encounter against instate-foe DePauw, who competes in Division III’s North Coast Athletic Conference.

If the Hoosiers are to continue an upward climb in the Big Ten, though, they will have to start by besting the Gophers, a team that senior Will Kendall said has caused them problems in the past.

“We split with Minnesota last year, beat them on their home courts in the regular season and then got knocked out by them in the Big Ten tournament semi-finals.” Kendall said. “Two years ago, we lost to them 4-3 in a match that probably cost us an NCAA Tournament bid. I know the upperclassmen on Minnesota after competing against them for three years. There’s not a lot of love lost between the players or coaches, so we’ll be expecting a ton of energy from them and a battle all day long.”

Minnesota and IU, who are currently tied for fifth in the Big Ten, will each enter Saturday’s skirmish fully cognizant of its potential implications.

“If we run the table and win the rest of the Big Ten matches — and three of them are at home — we’re in a heck of a position to make a run late in the year, especially in the Big Ten Tournament,” Bloemendaal said. “We have a heck of an opportunity to go 4-0, and (Minnesota) is the first step. If we have one little slip up, though, we’re kind of in there with a bunch of teams. We don’t have much of a margin of error here at the end, but you don’t any time you get into the postseason.”

Senior Jeremy Langer acknowledged the threat the Gophers present to the Hoosiers’ campaign for a flurry of a finish, but he said he and his teammates are brimming with confidence after last Sunday’s breakthrough at Nebraska.

“That win really meant a lot for us,” Langer said. “It got our momentum going again.”

In Lincoln, Neb., the Hoosiers overcame adversity both individually and collectively, as Langer fought off a sprained wrist to eke out a victory alongside doubles partner junior Isade Juneau. Later, Juneau rebounded from a first set defeat to record the match’s final point and ensure the team would not squander an early 3-0 overall lead.

“Isade took advantage of his first opportunity to serve out the match and played some really great points,” Langer said. “He did an unbelievable job. We were extremely excited and really cheering hard after he won.”

Despite still searching for the “next level or two” of play he said his squad is capable of achieving, Bloemendaal said he was similarly heartened by the overall display against the Cornhuskers.

“What I take away more than anything from last weekend is that when we had our backs against the wall, we played our best tennis,” Bloemendaal said. “You get a lot tougher on the road. Things that you might take for granted by playing a lot of home matches, you come back after a road trip and start embracing those things and using them to give you an advantage out on the court. I think that coming back after the tough couple of weeks on the road is going to be a catalyst to give us the momentum to do the sorts of things we’re aiming for.”

Those aspirations include a Big Ten Tournament championship, a top ten national ranking and a chance to play host to a NCAA Tournament Regional. These remain far-off goals at the moment, but a pair of victories this weekend would make them more realistic, Bloemendaal said.

“If we’re talking a week from now about the momentum we’ve gained, I’m not going to be surprised,” Bloemendaal said. “I think that’s kind of where we’re at. We just have to go out and take it at this point.”