Column: Seniors help men’s tennis finish regular season strong

Many successful college teams have seniors who help lead the way.

IU men’s tennis is no different.

Seniors Josh MacTaggart and Isade Juneau lead by example with strong play on the court.

Both were crucial players in the Hoosiers’ 7-0 sweep of Vincennes this past weekend to finish the regular season.

In the individuals competition, MacTaggart defeated freshman Warren Kuhn in his singles match 2-0.

This was the Barnston, U.K., native’s 116th singles win in his four-year career.

The 116 singles victories have helped put MacTaggart on top of the all-time singles wins list in IU history.

Juneau had the same success against his singles opponent. He swept his opponents and only allowed one set point in the entire match.

This win gave Juneau his 100th career win and put him in the century wins club with MacTaggart, as well as IU alumni Sven and Gunner Salumaa.

It’s a very difficult mark to reach for any college tennis player. Only four Hoosiers are in that club, and two of them are finishing out their careers after this season.

The other four IU players won their singles matches by a dominating margin.

The success in the singles competition continued to the doubles matches.

No. 19 doubles team Juneau and freshman Sam Monette defeated Kuhn and sophomore Erick Bermudez 8-4. 

The Hoosier duo ended their regular season with a 20-3 record, which is one of the best overall doubles record in the nation.

Both Juneau and Monette are from Repentigny, Quebec, which certainly helps them today because of their familiarity with each other’s styles.

The win gave Juneau his 84th career doubles victory donning the cream and crimson.

MacTaggart won his doubles match and earned another IU record in the process.

MacTaggart and freshman Alekzander Davila beat freshmen Garrett Mandrell and Harsha Manjunath 8-3.

The senior won his 102nd doubles match, which ties the all-time IU record for doubles victories.

Now, MacTaggart tops both the singles and doubles records, which proves why he is one of the best Hoosiers on the tennis court ever.

His consistency seemed to improve each and every season throughout his collegiate career, which might lead to a possible professional career.

But making it to the next level won’t be easy with the tough competition from solid players around the world.

Both MacTaggart and Juneau will be known for their IU records, but, more importantly, for the impact they made on this program.

The two players have done leaps and bounds for bringing success to Bloomington.

One of the most important things they did is help provide senior leadership during their last season.

The Hoosiers are a very young team in comparison to other Big Ten conference squads.

Five of their eight players on the roster are freshmen.

Coming from high school sports into college can be a big jump, and having experienced and successful players on the roster like MacTaggart and Juneau can help.

Hopefully, the two graduating seniors graduate know that they left the program in good hands and made their individual mark in the process.

That is something all college athletes want to do when they come into the program, and MacTaggart and Juneau did it.

­— amsiegal@indiana.edu