The IU men’s tennis 14th-ranked recruiting class will get its first taste of college action this weekend as the Hoosiers travel to West Lafayette, Indiana, for the Purdue Invitational. Senior Stefan Lugonjic will be joined on the road by three freshmen — Zac Brodney, Payam Ahmadi and William Piekarsky.
This weekend marks the first of eight fall tournaments. IU Coach Jeremy Wurtzman said he hopes to use these as preparation for the upcoming Big Ten season and and to get his young team acclimated to collegiate competition.
“Right now, it is all about getting matches at this level,” Wurtzman said. “So I think it is more getting them matches and getting them used to competing at this level, and also working with them through matches to build that coach and player relationship.”
The freshman recruiting class includes three 5-star recruits in Brodney, Ahmadi and Bennett Crane and Bloomington native Piekarsky.
The Hoosiers also gained two highly-touted transfers in Oliver Sec and Keivon Tabrizi. Sec, a sophomore transferring from Cal-Santa Barbara, was a five-star recruit out of New York.
Tabrizi, a junior transferring from Wake Forest, posted a 25-12 record in singles and 30-11 record in doubles during his time there.
“I feel like they are going to make a big impact, and I think as we move forward, they will be the make up of the team,” Wurtzman said. “It is just about them buying into the system right now and getting used to being a student athlete at IU and seeing how good their tennis can get as the season progresses.”
The Hoosiers also have a solid backbone of returning players to mix with the new faces.
Sophomore Antonio Cembellin and junior Raheel Manji both had success this summer at ITA Summer Nationals. Cembellin knocked off Manji in the finals of the singles tournament with a 7-4 victory in a tiebreak for the third set.
The Hoosier duo then paired up to take the doubles championship, which culminated in an 8-0 victory in the final against top-seeded Duke. Cembellin and Manji both picked up some ATP points along the way, as well as qualifying for the main draw in singles and doubles of the All-American Championships.
Also returning are seniors Matt McCoy and Stefan Lugonjic and sophomore Afonso Salgado. McCoy is coming off an impressive junior campaign, when he posted an 18-13 record.
Wurtzman said he’s focused on building a positive team culture at the moment because without that, it won’t matter what happens when his guys step onto the court. Who those guys are is subject to change, as no spots are guaranteed.
“We are really gearing towards being great teammates, that we are positive and really pushing each other and becoming family,” Wurtzman said.
