The Wisconsin men's tennis team will look for its first ever Big Ten title this weekend, entering Friday as the No. 4 seed in this weekend's conference tournament in Bloomington, Ind.
No. 7 Iowa and No. 9 Northwestern have already won first-round matches, but the Badgers, who finished 18-7 overall and 7-3 in conference, qualified for a first-round bye and will get their first taste of quarter-final action against Minnesota, a border-battle rematch they were prepared for.
""It was no big surprise,"" senior Michael Dierberger said, explaining the squad has known for some time Minnesota would likely be their first obstacle. ""They're a solid team, and we're going to play top tennis like we did during the season. They're going to be loud and fired up, so we know what to expect.""
The Gophers suffered a 5-2 loss at the hands of the Badgers in their last meeting but lead 5-2 in tournament meetings. Known as a particularly average squad, Minnesota ended its season No. 5 in the Big Ten with a record of 6-4 led by juniors No. 64 Sebastian Gallego and No. 106 Tobias Wernet. It's only been two weeks since the last time the teams met, but given Wisconsin's recent performances it seems the lineup has only elevated in the interim.
""We're improving the whole year, week by week, and I think that every day when we set our goals in practices that really helps as well,"" sophomore Patrick Pohlmann said. ""The mentality is that we go in there for winning it and ... we shouldn't back down.""
""We come and we play our best tennis against the best schools, which is really good,"" Dierberger added. ""We're peaking now.""
And this year there is a special glimmer for the Badgers' hopes of a first Big Ten title. Fresh off last weekend's near upset of the monster Ohio State Buckeyes who have owned the tournament the last five years and had not given up more than one point to any conference foe, the Badgers' lineup seems to be peaking at just the right moment.
They have never seemed more secure with their game either, boasting doubles combinations strong enough to pick the doubles point of Ohio State who has denied all other conference foes and three singles holding victories over ranked opponents.
""We just know that winning a Big Ten title is right there. We've just got to get past Ohio State in the semis, which we've shown we can do,"" Dierberger said. ""We know the potential of our team, and hopefully it shows in the tournament.""
The ups and downs of the regular season have played out, leaving head coach Greg Van Emburgh and the men eager for the challenge of the conference tournament and hopeful for an NCAA bid the following week.
""As a whole, there's a few matches that we maybe could have won, but at the end of the day, there's a couple that maybe we shouldn't have won,"" Van Emburgh said, reflecting on the season. ""We're excited about this weekend, and we're going to continue to work hard this week in practice and get ready for Minnesota on Friday.""
