After spending four years contributing to his team as both a player and a sideline mentor, IU men’s tennis senior Stefan Lugonjic will play his last home matchups this weekend.
Lugonjic, a native of Belgrade, Serbia, has become a fundamental member of the Hoosier roster. IU Coach Jeremy Wurtzman said he has set a standard for the team on hard work and dedication.
“A lot of emotions and flashbacks from when I started my collegiate career,” Lugonjic said. “Here since day one to where I am now — it is just a mix of positive and negative emotions, and I really think that it is my last home match playing for Indiana is sad.”
When he was a freshman, Lugonjic begun shaping up as one key player in IU’s arsenal.
During that season he recorded 12 wins, mainly at position three doubles, which included a victory against Iowa to secure the doubles point in a 4-3 IU win in April of 2014.
In his four seasons, he has also capitalized in individual play and enters the weekend with a total of 27 singles career wins.
However this season Lugonjic has been featured mainly in the Hoosiers’ doubles lineup and pairs up with sophomore Antonio Cembellin.
Lugonjic has come out on top in six doubles matches out of eight, and, while junior Raheel Manji was out injured, he stepped up and competed at No. 1 doubles.
Wurtzman said he does not recall a time when Lugonjic has not given his all in practice, and called the senior an extremely hard worker.
“He has put in the time every single day for the past two and a half years I have been here,” Wurztman said. “That is something we all can take from him — how much time and how much this means to him.”
It is not only in practice where Lugonjic leads by example.
During IU matches at the IU Tennis Center, Lugonjic is constantly competing intensely and supporting his teammates playing at other courts while playing doubles.
This does not stop when his doubles participation is over, however. He continues to encourage and advise those competing in singles from the sidelines.
As his final four matches in the Hoosier jersey get closer, Wurtzman said Lugonjic is seeking to continue his education in graduate school.
Wurtzman said he hopes the underclassmen took a lot from him because they are seeking to build on a tradition where the younger players learn from the older players, and, once they are gone, someone else takes a leadership role.
Lugonjic said he will miss his younger teammates most because they all have gone through the same lengthy process to achieve their goals.
In the twilight of his collegiate career, Lugonjic said he has simple advice for the younger members of the team and future Hoosier tennis players.
“They should utilize everything that they have in this four years,” Lugonjic said. “Because this four years go by fast, and if you do not recognize and do not see how much you have that can help you be successful, then time is going to pass by and you are going to miss an opportunity once in a lifetime.”
