The Indiana men’s tennis team returned to Bloomington to take on Illinois State University on Friday after a loss in its first road match of the season against Louisville on Feb. 26.
The Hoosiers came out firing on all cylinders in the doubles competition, with all three of their pairings notching quick 5-1 leads. The No. 3 doubles match ended in a 6-1 victory for the duo of Indiana junior Luka Vukovic and sophomore Michael Andre against the Redbirds’ pairing of junior Nan Pham and freshman Dominick Cuchran.
Moments after, Indiana senior Patrick Fletchall and sophomore Ilya Tiraspolsky won the No. 2 match by an identical score and got the Hoosiers on the board by securing the doubles point.
Head coach Jeremy Wurtzman stressed the importance of setting the tone early, especially in Indiana’s home matches.
“We want to be aggressive, play with energy and make it a tough place for the other team to play,” Wurtzman said. “We never want to make our opponent too comfortable, and we did a great job of that.”
Wurtzman said in Indiana’s previous match against Louisville, the team was unable to execute in the areas that yielded success against Illinois State because the Hoosier players couldn’t secure the doubles point and early singles disparities proved to be detrimental.
“Our energy was great, and we competed well,” Wurtzman said, “But in singles, we got ourselves in a few holes early on, and we weren’t used to (Louisville’s) building.”
On Friday, however, the Hoosiers executed their game plan nearly flawlessly.
“We talked a lot about being ready to go from the first point and playing on our own terms,” Wurtzman said.
After winning the doubles point against the visiting Redbirds, the Hoosiers never looked back.
Their momentum carried over into the singles matches, as eventual wins at the No. 1, 2 and 5 positions marked the second, third and fourth Indiana points of the evening.
Indiana senior Carson Haskins held off Pham 6-1, 6-3. Fletchall then defeated Illinois State junior Melker Isaksson 6-1, 6-2. Senior Vikash Singh closed out the match for the Hoosiers with a shutout against junior Arvid Hjalte, winning 6-0, 6-0.
When the rest of Friday’s individual matches were halted once Indiana confirmed its 4-0 victory, no Hoosier player trailed. Vukovic closed in on Redbird senior Diego Le Gal Perez 6-3, 5-1, in the No. 3 singles match. Ilya Tiraspolsky led senior Diego Emilio Moura Herrera 6-4, 3-0, at the No. 4 spot. Jagger Saylor rounded out the lineup with a 6-4, 2-1, lead at No. 6.
Wurtzman said two players, Fletchall and Vukovic, have been some of Indiana’s most reliable singles competitors thus far.
“Patrick has exceeded expectations this season, and that’s what we need from all of our guys,” Wurtzman said. “Luka’s match (Friday) should be a big confidence boost for him, too.”
Fletchall and Vukovic are both 5-3 in completed singles matches this season.
The Hoosiers will look to build a winning streak off of Friday’s dominant win. They travel Monday to Auburn, Alabama, to take on the No. 25-ranked Auburn University Tigers.
Although the next opponent will be one of the strongest Indiana faces all season, Wurtzman said the team is ready to head down south with a win under its belt. Matches like the one against Illinois State are the kind Wurtzman said will prepare the Hoosiers to take on some of the best programs in the country.
“Winning helps,” Wurtzman said. “You can practice all you want, but true confidence is going to come from winning matches.”
