JUNIOR MAURICIO BALLIVAN winds up for a shot Sunday against a Memphis opponent. Ballivan played in the No. 1 slot for Drake’s home opener and won both his matches this weekend. Photo: Matt Nelson
The bleachers in the Roger Knapp Tennis Center were barren. A few Des Moines tennis fans meandered throughout the center; hardly a home-court advantage. The men’s tennis squad, among the most successful teams on campus with three NCAA tournament bids in the last four years and numerous Missouri Valley Conference championships, has never brought in a big crowd. As the matches were about to begin, a steady flow of fans trickled onto the bleachers. With an arsenal of fresh faces on the court, the Bulldogs were able to bring in the largest crowd in years as they beat the Northern Illinois Huskies 5-2.
“In previous years there were maybe one-tenth the amount of students as there are here today,” said Carol Reinhard, a loyal Drake tennis fan who has been attending matches for years.
Head Coach Jimmy Borendame called Saturday’s victory merely a good start in what the Bulldogs hope to be another fantastic season.
The Bulldogs showed their improved doubles skills early on, sweeping all three matches. Sophomore Cesar Bracho had recovered from his back injury that sidelined him at the Missouri Valley Conference Individuals Championships but was sidelined due to a sprained ankle suffered in practice last week. Freshman James McKie would once again partner up with junior Mauricio Ballivian as the duo earned an 8-1 victory.
“Doubles was very solid,” McKie said. “Our returns were really good so that helped a lot.”
The rest of the doubles lineup followed suit as senior Gui Marsiglia and freshman Jean Erasmus also won 8-1, and Ryan Drake and Jonathan Hadash would come back from an early deficit to win 8-4.
Despite winning three matches, NCAA rules count all three doubles matches as only one point. With a 1-0 lead heading into singles play, Drake would not loosen their grip on the Huskies.
The Bulldogs won the first, second, fifth and sixth singles spots in convincing fashion. Coach Borendame was especially impressed by freshman Ryan Drake’s performance at No. 6 singles with a 6-2, 6-2 victory.
“I felt really prepared and really focused the entire match,” Drake said. “They were a good team, pretty respectable.”
The Bulldogs lost at No. 3 and No. 4 despite Marsiglia and sophomore Jonathan Hadash battling to take both matches to a third set super-tiebreaker.
“With four new players and a couple of close points in the tiebreakers we could have had a sweep at singles too though,” Borendame said.
Borendame and his players are looking forward to a long road stretch to help improve their play before coming back to the Roger Knapp Tennis Center in late February.
“I think we will develop as a team the more we play together as a team,” Drake said.
The Bulldogs will take on Big Ten and in-state rival Iowa on Feb. 24 at 6 p.m. in the Roger Knapp Tennis Center.
