Senior Sam Monette was the catalyst to both victories, winning the singles championship and the doubles championship with partner senior Daniel Bednarczyk.
“We wanted to see progress from last year,” Monette said. “But really we wanted to come here and win the title.”
The tournament featured 128 singles players and 64 doubles teams and took place Oct. 15-19 at the University of Tennessee.
In doubles, the Monette-Bednarczyk duo was seeded sixth in the tournament, while Bednarczyk was seeded seventh in singles and Monette was 15th.
The low seeds didn’t affect their mindset though, Monette said.
“I came into this tournament thinking that, no matter what number was by my name or what number was by my opponent’s name, I was going to win,” Monette said.
The championship competition began Monday with Monette and Bednarczyk facing off against Ball State’s Lucas Anderson and Andrew Stutz.
The Hoosiers won both of their service games to take a 3-0 lead in the first set and eventually pulled away to win the set 6-1.
In the second set, the Hoosiers broke the Cardinals once again on their first opportunity and took the victory with a 6-2 set win.
“I’ve known Danny since we were 10 years old in Canada,” said Monette, a native of Quebec. “With me and Danny, I feel like no one can touch us because they don’t have that connection. I know him as a brother, and he’s really the anchor of the team, mentally.”
After a break, Monette walked onto the court once again to take on Eduardo Mena of Tennessee Tech for the singles championship.
“There was very little time to prepare for another win,” Monette said. “So I used the momentum from the doubles match and the momentum created by the rest of the guys to motivate me through the match.”
Monette only allowed Mena four set points throughout the two-set match, winning 6-1, 6-3.
Despite the championship victories, Monette said the tournaments aren’t very significant for the season.
“The goal in these tournaments is to just get ready for the season,” Monette said. “It’s nothing compared to the season.”
While most of the team will travel to play in the Wake Forest Invitational Nov. 6 through Nov. 8, Monette and Bednarczyk qualified for the USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships Nov. 12 through Nov. 15 in Flushing, New York.
Monette said the duo must stress early preparation, despite there being nearly a month until the national championship.
“It can be tricky because after a good performance, it’s tough to get back to work right away,” Monette said. “With so much time between now and then, we need to start practicing and stay focused on what’s coming.”
