After snapping a three-match losing streak last Thursday with a victory over Sacramento State, the men’s tennis team will try to make it two in a row as team members travel to Dallas today to take on the Southern Methodist University Mustangs.
TCU is ranked No. 42 with a 6-5 record and is facing an SMU squad that has won two matches in a row and has a 9-9 record. The Mustangs’ top doubles team is ranked No. 29 in the country and beat an undefeated doubles team from Oral Roberts on Friday.
Head Coach Dave Borelli said he is not worried about his team’s record and said he doesn’t think anyone else should either.
“It has not been a bad year,” he said. “Two of our five losses have come against the finalists in the Blue Gray Bowl, which is a highly prestigious tournament.”
In addition to those losses, two others came from matches against Baylor, which is ranked No. 8 in the nation.
Sophomore Slah Mbarek said the team has been “getting back to fundamentals in practice,” which helped secure the win against Sacramento State.
In regards to the match with SMU, Borelli said that he doesn’t worry about SMU as much as his own squad.
“The focus is on us and where we need to improve,” he said. “If we play well, we should win.”
Last year, the Horned Frogs won a hard fought home matchup against SMU 4-3. This time the matchup will take place on SMU’s campus at the Turpin Tennis Stadium where the Mustangs are 6-2 on the season.
The men’s team will return home to the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center on Saturday, as it plays host to Rice University.
The No. 72 TCU women’s tennis team will travel to Wichita, Kan. on Friday to take on the Wichita State Shockers. This will be the first matchup for TCU in the Shocker Classic. They will then face Notre Dame on Saturday.
The Frogs are coming off a tough 5-2 loss at home last Thursday against No. 23 Virginia Commonwealth University. TCU only won one singles match against VCU and will have to improve on that against the Shockers, who boast the No. 39 overall singles player in Lutfiana Budiharto.
Wichita State comes into this match on a two-match losing streak after dropping matches against No. 25 Iowa and No. 33 Tulsa in the Indian Wells Tournament last week. The Shockers are 4-1 at home at the Sheldon Coleman Tennis Complex.
The women’s team will return home to host Air Force as Mountain West Conference play begins on April 2.