With his team riding a three-match winning streak, women’s tennis head coach David Borelli said the team was playing its best tennis of the season as the Frogs head into this weekend in hopes of winning four matches in five days.
Borelli said he thought this would be a rebuilding year but that he believed the team has surpassed that mentality. The girls are playing well and have improved quite a bit.
“Our key is to stay healthy, and I feel every team we play from here on out we can beat,” Borelli said.
Borelli said after not being able to play in the North Texas match because of rain, it was a great chance to get a little rest before the upcoming conference matches this weekend. The North Texas match was not as significant as playing in the upcoming Mountain West Conference slate, he said.
The cancellation marked the second time this season TCU and UNT tried to play, but inclement weather foiled both matches. The match has been canceled for the season due to scheduling conflicts, women’s tennis media relations director Chris Perry said.
“We took advantage of the time off, and now we have these three tough matches ahead of us and then SMU Tuesday.” Borelli said.
Senior Idunn Hertzberg said although the team had a week-long break, it was still mentally and physically prepared for the upcoming matches. The time off has not damaged the team’s chances at all because it has already played so many matches. She said a few days of rest are not going to hurt the team’s concentration.
Borelli said the warmer it gets, the better it will be for the team. It will give the team an advantage because it is in such great physical shape compared to other teams, he said.
Focusing on the grueling upcoming matches, Borelli said the team was very physically fit and conditioned, but there were still some chronic health issues for some of the team members that would be dealt with as they arise.
Sophomore Molly Welsh said after the Frogs’ three-match win streak, they are very confident going into this weekend’s conference matches and that they plan to play even better.
Borelli said he would be disappointed if the team did not come out of this weekend with at least two wins, if not all three.
“My team is a very good competitive group,” Borelli said. “They compete well and are a very smart group of kids. Whatever the result, I will be very happy with them.”
Senior Maria Babanova said the upcoming conference matches are going to be tough. The last two matches will be harder to get through, but during the first two the team should have the rhythm and the ability to win, she said.
Borelli said he thought the key was to focus on one match at a time.
“It has been a really fun year, and I have really enjoyed being around the girls,” Borelli said. “After a match is over, I don’t feel like they have left anything out and they leave everything on the court.”
TCU vs. BYU
When: 2 p.m. today
Where: Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center
GoFrogs.com: Follow live coverage of matches.
TCU vs. Utah
When: 10 a.m. Saturday
Where: Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center
GoFrogs.com: Follow live coverage of matches.
TCU vs. New Mexico
When: 10 a.m. Sunday
Where: Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center
GoFrogs.com: Follow live coverage of matches.
