The No. 33 Wisconsin men's tennis team returns to the Division I NCAA Men's Tennis Tournament Saturday to take on No. 32 Washington in Los Angeles, Calif.
The Badgers (17-9) will play in the tournament for the second-consecutive year for the first time in school history. UW will also face the Huskies (14-9) for the second time in two years.
Last season, the Badgers defeated the Huskies 4-3 in the first round of the tournament in South Bend, Ind. Moritz Baumann, then a freshman, broke a 3-3 stalemate with a 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 triumph over No. 64 Alex Slovic at the No. 1 singles slot.
UW coach Greg Van Emburgh, who described the match as a dogfight,"" cited the fantastic play of senior Lachezar Kasarov, who fought back from a set and double break down to win his match, and Baumann, a two-time All-Big Ten selection who will also compete in the singles tournament later this month.
""That was a pretty big feat for a freshman that just came in in January, to be able to pull us through that match,"" Van Emburgh said of Baumann. ""Those are the types of things that I expect from him and that he's capable of doing.""
The Badgers enter the tournament coming off of a 4-1 loss in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals to No. 15 Illinois. The match that worried both Van Emburgh and the players, however, was the previous match, a narrow 4-3 defeat of Minnesota, a team that the Badgers had swept 7-0 on April 13 during the regular season.
""We didn't really play well as a team [in the Minnesota match],"" freshman Marek Michalicka said, ""but Illinois is a good team, a top-20 team.""
The head coach is confident that the Badgers will regain their edge.
""I felt like the match we played against Minnesota, we weren't as focused and determined as I'd like to see us, or have seen us before,"" Van Emburgh said. ""I think we're going to get that back for Saturday.""
Following the tournament, Van Emburgh gave the team two days off before returning to practice Monday. It was a much needed rest for UW as well as a chance to catch up with school work, especially with finals on the horizon.
""We have not gone crazy this week,"" Van Emburgh said. ""Sometimes when you've had a long season, and we feel fortunate that we're in a position to be able continue our season, you want to make sure you maintain the guys and keep them fresh.""
Michalicka is feeling the heat as a freshman juggling tennis and final exams, but said he ""feels good"" about his play entering the tournament.
""We're just hitting balls this week, trying to get in good shape,"" Michalicka said. ""It's tough to go to practice and study for exams at the same time.""
Washington, meanwhile, is making its 14th straight NCAA Tournament appearance. The Huskies have advanced to the Round of 16 in five of the past seven seasons. Van Emburgh knows his players need to be ready.
""I know Washington is going to be a tough team,"" Van Emburgh said. ""They're ranked one spot ahead of us and they're well-coached ... I'm sure they're going to be looking for a little bit of redemption from last year. I think it's important that our guys are really ready and really focused.
