Men's Tennis | 9/27/2017 11:04:00 AM
POCATELLO, Idaho – The Idaho State men's tennis team opens fall play this weekend at home with the Bank of Commerce Invitational, Sept. 28-Oct. 1 at the Osborn Tennis Center in Capell Park in Chubbuck, Idaho. It is the first of three fall tournaments for the Bengals who are coming off their best season since 2013.
"We've got a new team this year with five new players and three returning," senior
Keegan Sullivan said. "I think we have a great bunch of guys, especially building from last year. The energy has been great in practice, and it's just been good to be around a good bunch of guys."
The Bengals return seniors Sullivan and
William Edin as well as junior
Francis Filipovich while adding some talented transfers and freshman to the group. Junior college transfers
Peter Trhac and
David Felix join the mix as juniors while Dalton State transfer
Adam Hornby arrives as a senior. Both
Austin Gwilliam and
Ryan Boddington begin their careers as freshmen.
"Peter and David both have really big games, and they came here to compete," Head Coach
Mark Rodel said. "I'm very excited about them; they definitely have helped raise the level and they come in with a level of maturity that we needed to balance out the team. Senior [
Adam Hornby] we haven't been able to see much because he's off playing in the Davis Cup, but he's got a lot of experience, is a really nice guy and works really hard. The two freshmen I couldn't be more happy with because they've picked up right where these guys, the three seniors, have led off. They come in and know exactly how to work at practice, they work hard and they've joined the culture really nicely. I'm excited about what they'll do this year."
Idaho State hosts seven teams, including five Big Sky teams, in this weekend's ITA-sanctioned Bank of Commerce Invitational: Idaho, Boise State, Montana, Montana State, Southern Utah, Weber State and Utah State. Every player is guaranteed two singles and two doubles matches, weather permitting, with 112 total matches among all eight teams for the tournament.
"[The fall season] gives the players a chance to practice against other Division I opponents, get climatized to the level of tennis and get into a competitive environment," Rodel said. "Then it gives me the opportunity to see where they need to improve and develop their games. It helps me work on game plans with them that we will implement in the spring, and it also helps shape our lineup and where the guys see themselves within the team."
The tournament is free and open to the public and will begin with doubles play Thursday, Sept. 28 at 1 p.m. at Capell Park with singles play beginning Thursday afternoon. For updates on draws, matches and scores, click
here.
