Blugold tennis fight back from losses last weekend

    After losing heartbreakers a week earlier, the Blugold tennis teams proved they are a top team in the region

    More stories from Trent Tetzlaff

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    The No. 3 doubles team of senior Jordon Stevens and junior Will Weyenberg dug themselves into a deep hole on the court Friday afternoon, UW-Eau Claire tennis coach Tom Gillman said.

    Down 5-0 to their counterparts from Augustana College (Ill.), they were able to come out quickly and made some great shots, Gillman said.

    Although they were in a tough spot, he said the two were far from done as they battled back from the deficit by getting back to their game and playing how they wanted to, rather than letting their opponents dictate their play.

    “The comeback win at three doubles was a nice momentum swing for us,” Gillman said. “but the thing that is unique about our team is how we have been really resilient and been able to win matches after only winning one doubles point.”

    Gillman said overall with the men’s team he was happy to see the men’s team get back to themselves on the court and play the way he knows they can.

    Along with the win at No. 3 doubles, the No. 1 team of senior Kyle Hoffman and junior Michael Mauthe pulled out an 8-4 win, which set the Blugolds up for success in singles, Gillman said.

    He said when the team wins one or two doubles matches to start the day, most of the time they feel confident they will come out with a win.

    “If we can win two or three of the doubles matches to start normally we can begin to smell the steak,” he said. “And that may not be a good thing for some teams that don’t have strong singles, but with us we are confident in our singles play.”

    In singles the No. 2 through No. 6 spots were dominated by Blugold wins over Augustana, which finished off the 7-2 win.

    The Blugold women swept their second match in a row this past weekend with a 9-0 win over NCAA Division II University of Minnesota Duluth.

    In doubles the No.1 team of senior Colleen McCullough and sophomore Sarah Henderson set the tone with an 8-4 win followed by junior Olivia Gallagher’s and senior Paige Kuepers’ win at No. 2 doubles.

    Henderson put up a 7-5, 6-1 win at No. 1 singles and the rest of the lineup followed suit with two set wins.

    Gillman said he was happy with how his teams were able to bounce back after a weekend where both teams had tough losses.

    “It’s just a matter of consistency that’s the difference maker for us,” he said. “A lot of our emphasis is just doing what we do a little more consistently, and we will continue to work on that.”

    Over the weekend the women’s team will travel to take on Lake Forest College (Ill.) and Carthage College at 9 a.m. and noon, respectively, in Illinois. The men’s team will finish up regular season play with a 3:30 p.m. match on Friday against UW-La Crosse, followed by matches against UW-Oshkosh and UW-Whitewater on Saturday in Oshkosh.