Potentially the most crucial matches of the season for Idaho men’s tennis (11-13, 1-3 WAC) are today. The Vandals play Hawaii (5-10, 2-1 WAC) at 9 a.m. and the host school Utah State (4-9, 0-2 WAC) at 2 p.m. in Logan.
Tony Marcolina | Argonaut Idaho senior Andrew Dobbs returns the ball during a doubles practice match with Abid Akbar Monday on the Memorial Gym tennis courts. The men beat Northern Arizona 7-0 last Friday in Lewiston, putting them at an overall record of 11-13.
The matches are especially important because they will decide seeding for the WAC Championships April 27 to 29. If Idaho wins both matches, it will likely be the No. 2 or 3 seed. If the Vandals drop one, they will likely hold the No. 4 or 5 seed, and losing both would provide Idaho the No. 6 seed. No. 26 Fresno State has already secured the No. 1 seed and will likely cruise through the WAC Championship.
“That’s where Fresno has really distanced themselves as the top team in the conference,” Idaho Director of Tennis Jeff Beaman said. “They went 5-0 in conference play and locked up the one seed.”
If Idaho does secure the No. 2 or 3 seed, it wouldn’t face the Bulldogs until the championship game of the tournament, which Beaman wants. He said the competition today won’t be as tough as his squad might have seen during the season, but it is definitely formidable.
“(Hawaii is) a really talented team,” Beaman said. “They’re coming off a big win at UNLV. They’re gonna be a tough match, a really important match for the conference tournament.”
He said Utah State is having an off year, but conditions make it more competitive.
“They (Utah State) graduated a lot of their top guys,” Beaman said. “But it’s one of those things, playing at elevation at home, they’re a tough match.”
The doubles point has been a spot of frustration for Beaman and his team throughout the majority of the season, but he said it shouldn’t be a problem this weekend. He said Marius Cirstea and Filip Fitchel have solidified in the No. 3 spot and the No. 1 and 2 pairings are working well together.
Beaman said the goal is to win both, something he believes attainable.
“I’m really confident,” Beaman said. “It’s gonna be a tough day, a long day. I feel good going into it that we can pull out two wins.”
Nick Groff can be reached at [email protected]