Men’s tennis wins twice at Rice Invitational

By Catherine Levins     3/25/14 7:53pm

This past weekend the Rice men’s tennis team competed in the 56th annual Rice Invitational against Texas A&M, Corpus Christi and Tulane University. Despite persistent rain on Friday, the team won 4-0 against Texas A&M, Corpus Christi. 

This past weekend the Rice men’s tennis team competed in the 56th annual Rice Invitational against Texas A&M, Corpus Christi and Tulane University. Despite persistent rain on Friday, the team won 4-0 against Texas A&M, Corpus Christi. 

Sunday’s matches against No. 67 Tulane proved to be a closer match. Tulane had the advantage after the round of doubles, so the Owls needed to win four of their six single matches to secure the team’s 4-3 victory. 

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Freshman David Warren said the team is starting to find their rhythm and perform well as a unit.

“I think, even though maybe the record didn’t show it, we were doing the right things,” Warren said. “Now as a team we are starting to play much better, and everyone is competing really hard and it’s really showing.”

Sophomores Adam Gustaffsson and Gustavo Gonzalez won their matches to help secure Rice’s victory. Their quick wins in their singles matches gave Rice a 2-1 lead; however, Rice needed to secure two more wins when the rain set in. 

Warren and sophomore Tommy Bennett were forced to move their third sets to the indoor courts. Bennett said he helped the team win due in large part to the support of his teammates and fans.

“I’m not typically as good indoors, so I was a bit nervous to see if I could hold on to [my momentum],” Bennett said. “We came in here [and] all the guys made a ton of noise on the side and it helped me get through.”

Despite the change in facility, Bennett and Warren won their matches 2-1 each. Tulane 4-3. Head Coach Efe Ustundag said that, despite the fact that the team had to win in a fashion that they were not accustomed to, Gustafsson and Gonzalez helped the team win due to their strong individual performances.

“The fact that we hadn’t won a match this whole year after losing a doubles point only adds to the pressure, but [the team] responded,” Ustundag said. “Adam [Gustafsson] and Gustavo [Gonzalez] getting on the ball quickly, I think, really helped this team.” 

The Owls will have an opportunity to continue their winning streak when they play no. 12 Texas A&M  on Tuesday in College Station, TX.

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