Michigan Tech’s Men’s and Women’s Tennis teams are starting the season ready for competition. Mike Andrews, the head coach for both teams, said he was “excited for our team to compete… they’ve been working hard for the past month in practice.” Andrews highlighted the large number of returning players, only losing one men’s player, then adding three new additions. Jackson Hancock and Spencer Coates, both incoming freshmen, have joined the men’s team, and Claudia Calabuig Patino has transferred onto the women’s team from Lawrence Tech.
The student athletes of the tennis teams work hard, both on and off the court, balancing academics and athletics. On top of managing classes and work, Andrews described how players spend “15 hours a week” practicing with coaches. Andrews continued, “in January, when our main season is [ongoing], we can go up to 20 hours.”
Andrews, entering his second year of coaching at Michigan Tech, mentioned the players are “coming in more prepared from a physical standpoint and from a playing standpoint.” Andrews continued, “I’m impressed with where we are right now, I think compared to last year we’re farther ahead… they have the skills to compete with anyone in the region, now it’s just a matter of putting it all together.”
Andrews mentioned the importance of “honing the skill sets they have.” He elaborated, “It’s not a cookie cutter thing where I need to do this, this, and this for all 18, 20 players, because everyone plays a little bit differently.” When it’s time to compete, Andrews described, “It’s about finalizing everyone’s individual game plan, depending on their style of play… you play to their strengths, you build on their strengths and don’t forget about them, and then work on R.A.D. [rally, attack, and defense]… every ball you get is gonna be in that category, R.A.D… it’s either a rally ball, an attacking ball, or a defending ball.”
Moving forward, Andrews is looking forward to the team’s Spring Break trip to Orlando, FL, where they will compete in five matches, starting off the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC). For more information about the team’s schedule, roster, or match results, go to the Michigan Tech sports page at michigantechhuskies.com.
