Coming off a successful weekend with three victories with consistent play, the Hoosiers play their fourth home matchup in a row against an opponent that has gotten the best out of them in the past.
This weekend IU will play Princeton at the IU Tennis Center. In their last two encounters the Tigers have come out on top.
IU freshman Zac Brodney said being 5-0 on the season gives the team confidence, yet there is no reason for the Hoosiers to let their guard down against its upcoming Ivy League opponent.
“It is always nice to start like we did,” IU Coach Jeremy Wurtzman said. “I feel like our work ethic and focus in our practices has been very good and the team is very motivated, moving on to Princeton this weekend I think is going to be a tougher match than a lot of the matches we had this season.”
The five matches played prior to IU’s encounter with Princeton have given Wurtzman opportunities to experiment with his lineup and have given the Hoosiers more matchup experience in contrast to their opponents.
Princeton lost its season opener Thursday to No. 18 Michigan, 6-1, so Princeton's matchup against IU will only be its second of the season.
“That is kind of what we wanted to do,” Wurtzman said. “Get the team a lot of wins this first part of the season, especially the new guys, so I think that will give them more confidence as we go into a more challenging part of our season.”
However, in recent years the Hoosiers have not been able to defeat the Tigers.
In 2015 Princeton came out on top 4-1 at San Diego during a spring tour. Last season the Hoosiers went on the road to play the Tigers at their facility and lost 6-1.
IU’s only point against Princeton last season came from then-No. 37 ranked senior Sam Monette, who won his match at position-one singles in straight sets.
“We went through a patch there last season where we were playing a lot of road matches and that was kind off in the middle of it,” Wurtzman said. “So I feel that it is going to be nice that we are now at home and also on a winning streak.”
The matchup is scheduled for 3 p.m. and will be the only matchup for the Hoosiers this weekend as they look to maintain their perfect home record.
“I think it is going to be a crucial doubles point,” Wurtzman said. “I think that is going to be a big point for both teams, and then throughout the lineup everyone is pretty equal, so I would say all matches are going to be very close.”
