DENVER – MSU Denver is looking for a tennis breakthrough in 2023.
The Roadrunners' men's and women's teams, each of whom begin the official spring portion of their schedules with three matches this weekend, are trying to go one step beyond this season and reach the NCAA Division II Tournament.
"Both teams have the goal to move to nationals," MSU Denver coach
Josh Graetz said. "And that means finishing in the top four in the region. The guys were very close to that last year at fifth, and the year prior the ladies were fifth in the region. Both teams have set themselves up for success going into this weekend."
The Roadrunners are playing Saturday and Sunday in Kearney, Neb., this weekend. Both teams play Midwestern State (Texas) at 7 a.m. MST Saturday, and follow that up with 4 p.m. MST matches later in the day, with the men playing Newman (Kan.) and the women squaring off with Doane (Neb.). On Sunday, both teams play Augustana (S.D.) at 11 a.m. MST.
"We're pretty familiar with Midwestern State from back when they were in our region," Graetz said. "They're a well-coached, disciplined team and we're going to have to come out ready to go against them.
"It'll be a challenge playing three matches in two days. The ladies played an exhibition (Saturday against Colorado State), which helped their conditioning, but for the guys this will be their first opportunity to see where we're at."
While Colorado State defeated the Roadrunners' women 4-0 in the exhibition, Graetz liked what he saw in playing against a Division I opponent.
Kambra Roles and
Lilly Stienemeier won their No. 3 doubles match, and
Kinsey Fields and
Isabel Heras nearly won at No. 1 (losing 7-5), which would have given the doubles point to MSU Denver.
"I thought it was great," Graetz said. "And I don't think the results fully reflected how we played. We caught them off guard in doubles, but that almost hurt us going into singles. They were awake after doubles, and they just outplayed us in singles.
"We should be really confident about how we're executing in doubles."
During the fall portion of the schedule, the MSU Denver men were 2-1, while the women were 3-1.
Now both teams will look to build upon that, with long road trips scheduled for Kansas and Missouri (one trip) and California. The Roadrunners have even been able to schedule a home match with Hawaii-Hilo in April, a rare opportunity to play a Pacific West Conference team at home.
After the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference discontinued sponsoring tennis as a championship sport, MSU Denver joined the PacWest as an affiliate member, however the league has no set conference schedule (or standings) and thus most teams just stay on the West Coast to play.
Ultimately, it could all come down to the PacWest Tournament, because the entire West Region includes only PacWest programs.
It's been more than four months since the teams' last official dual, and things change over time.
Graetz said he's been particularly pleased with the play of
Marie Cool for the women and
Alejandro Jimenez for the men.
Cool, who played No. 6 singles in the fall, played No. 3 last weekend against Colorado State.
"Marie has started this semester really strong and pushed her way up the lineup," Graetz said. "She's just been really consistent day after day after day. Consistency as an athlete is what helps you."
Jimenez was 3-0 at No. 3 in the fall (and 5-2 overall) after posting a 14-5 overall record last season while playing primarily lower in the lineup.
"Ale is playing at a really high level," Graetz said. "He's acting, playing and preparing like a winner. He's dramatically improved this season, and I'm excited for him because he deserves it. He's actively worked to get better, and he should have a really good spring."
