Tennessee Men's Tennis Team in the Finals

#26
#26
I think we need a Vol Olympic sports forum @Freak .....Tennis, Track and field, and swimming/diving....Tennis has been great the last two years
 
#27
#27
This is the first time I have ever been interested in Tennessee tennis and I was glued to my phone today watching the matches. Which players will we be losing next year? I always get confused with the covid year

Next year the Vols will lose Adam Walton, who's had a great career at singles and doubles. Mark Wallner, a German, will also be gone. He's been a spot singles player who lately has been teaming with Jo Monday in doubles, and they've been playing well. Pat Harper, Walton's doubles partner, Emile Hudd, a transfer from Oklahoma St. who's been playing well at the No.3 singles spot, and Martim Prata are all seniors. I'm not sure if they'll be leaving or getting an extra Covid year; we'll have to wait and see.

Assuming none of them turn pro, and that's not a certainty, Johannus Monday (our best player), S. Matsui (very good), and transfer Blaise Bicknell (very good), who's been ineligible so far this year, will lead the Vols next year. All three seem to have pro potential, so it's possible that one or more could leave and try the tough pro circuit. Angel Diaz, who's been solid at our No. 4 spot, will also be back, as will current freshman Conor Gannon, who's got a lot of potential. UT will have a freshman player from England next year--a kid who's supposed to be quite good, especially at doubles. And we've got a senior transfer coming in from UT Chatanooga--an Argentine who's played very well for trhe Mocs.

To keep the Vols at or near the top of the collegiate rankings, Woodruff is likely going to recruit talented transfers to fill openings rather than rely too heavily on incoming freshmen who need time to develop. When a kid is special, like Matsui, he'll be signed as a freshman, but Woodruff is going to lean on transfers to stay strong every year--as all the top programs are doing now. Indeed, UT signed three freshmen in the last couple of years--and I think Woodruff, after seeing them train, informed all of them that they weren't likely to see much action with the Vols. All three transferred out. If you're a coach and you can get a talented veteran via the portal, you're going to go that route to keep your team in the national title hunt every year.
 
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#28
#28
No, the outdoor tourney is THE NCAA national championship. That's the one that matters. This one is a prestigious tourney, to be sure--it's run by the governing body for college tennis, the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, or ITA, but the winner is not an NCAA national champion, as far as I know.
It is just like indoor track vs outdoor track.
 
#29
#29
We could talk about the women's tennis team here as well. They're decent but not as good as the men--didn't make the ITA indoor tourney.
 

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