TN: Men celebrate seniors, women host SBC pod
4/5/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
April 5, 2017
UTA Notes | Live Stats vs. UL
ARLINGTON, Texas - A big weekend is ahead for UTA tennis as the men and women are both in action at the UTA Tennis Center with a total of three matches.
The women begin action in a four-team Sun Belt pod with matches against Louisiana (Friday, 2 p.m.) and Texas State (Sunday, 11 a.m.). The men host their Senior Day match on Saturday at 11 a.m. against in-state rival UTSA. For Saturday, free T-shirts will be given away to fans as well as pizza provided at the conclusion of the doubles point. Admission to all UTA Tennis matches is free.
The Mavericks will celebrate the careers of four seniors on the men's side that have totaled 208 wins between doubles and singles at UTA. Daniel Armengol, Jhonathan Gonzalez, Mario Muniesa and Pablo Colvee are part of a group that lifted the conference title last season.
"It is unbelievable in what they mean for the program," UTA coach Diego Benitez said. "These guys won the very first Sun Belt Conference title for UTA Tennis, so it is very special. They are a special group of kids on the court and off the court. Off the court they are just like brothers. It will be exciting and hopefully not too emotional."
The UTA men have just two matches remaining on its schedule before heading to New Orleans for the SBC Championship tournament on April 21. The mission for the guys has been looking at the current match at hand and knowing that if they just leave it all on the court, that the results are more likely to come in their favor.
"We are just taking it one match at a time and we have a few matches before the conference tournament," Muniesa said. "We need to do great in those matches. When we get to conference we need to just take it as it is just one match and nothing else matters. We just want to do great every time."
UTA is 13-7 overall and have been off since March 25 when it posted an impressive road win against Wichita State, nipping the Shockers 4-3.
Benitez is happy about where the team is at the moment as they head down the final stretch of the campaign and is confident that they are close to playing their best tennis.
"We are very close to playing at the pinnacle of our level," Benitez said. "We have come together a long way since the beginning of the season. We have had a good season with a lot of good results out there. We have to be consistent and take care of the things that we can."
For the women, the Mavericks (8-8, 2-0 Sun Belt) are relishing the opportunity to take on conference competition on the home court and have built up the experience to post positive results when it matters most.
UTA is coming off a tough weekend of action against top teams in the Texas Region, falling 4-1 to No. 47 Rice and a close 4-3 defeat to crosstown rival SMU.
"We are excited about hosting the pod this weekend," Benitez said. "The girls are really excited about the competition and it is going to be good matches against some good teams. We know those teams, we have played them quite a few times in the fall and we are looking forward to the competition."
The tandem of senior Astrid Gehre and freshman Anna Wichert continue to be a force in doubles action, improving to 16-0 as they won both matches last week. The success has moved the pair into No. 71 in the latest ITA Collegiate Rankings, a first for the freshman.
"It is big," Benitez said. "Anytime you have a freshman that is nationally ranked it is exciting and you know you are doing something good in the recruiting process, so I am excited about her. I am excited about Astrid, our senior, she is taking command of the team and stepping up and being the leader. She is taking her under her wing and they are complimenting each other very well."
Gehre has a lot to accomplish in her final week's at UTA. The senior is just one win away in doubles from moving into second in all-time wins.
The women conclude their regular season on April 15 when they host Metroplex rival North Texas at 2 p.m.
