Tennis wins on senior day, finishes undefeated in the SBC
Caitlyn Alvarado / Staff Writer
The No. 74 Mean Green tennis team finished the last weekend before the Sun Belt Conference Championships with two wins, defeating Troy University and Middle Tennessee State University at home at the Waranch Tennis Complex.
With the two wins, UNT finishes the season undefeated in SBC play.
“We could not have asked for a better finish,” head coach Sujay Lama said. “We had fabulous weather and the team was sharp. We couldn’t have asked for more.”
Troy
On Friday, the Trojans 12-game winning streak came to a halt as the Mean Green won 4-1.
Senior Ilona Serchenko earned the first singles win for UNT in the match against the Trojans.
“It was so very emotional,” Serchenko said. “You really got to see how much people care for you and winning these two matches were very important to just have behind you and use for motivation for the championships.”
Middle Tennessee
On Sunday, UNT added another win to its record as it defeated MTSU 4- 0. Senior Valentina Starkova clinched the match for the Mean Green.
“It was an incredible feeling,” Starkova said. “Clinching the match on senior day is just amazing. I kept thinking ‘this is the last point I will ever play at home.’ If it would have turned out differently, I probably wouldn’t be as happy.”
Sunday was also senior day for Serchenko, Starkova and team captain Barbora Vykydalova. The girls received gifts, flowers and recognition for their last season as a UNT tennis athlete.
“This is a special time, and they have done so much for this program,” Lama said. “They have the most wins for a senior group in the history of this program. They have been tremendous ambassadors. They are what student athletes are about.”
The team will find out today who its opponents are for the SBC Championship. Lama said the team is more than prepared for this week.
“Tennis is like school,” Lama said. “You do your homework every day, take quizzes, take midterms. This is the finals, the championships are the finals. If you have passed it all, this is no need to worry. We have done it all.”
There are no comments at the moment, do you want to add one?
Write a comment