After a weeks training on and off the court, Lipscomb men’s tennis team opened its spring season, losing the matchups against the Vanderbilt Commodores Saturday afternoon at the Currey Tennis Center.
The way the Bisons fought through the singles and doubles matches was exactly what coach Mario Hernandez said he was hoping for.
“We went in to make the Commodores play and I think we did a great job — the boys tried to play their game but it came down to execution,” Hernandez said.
The Bisons put up a fight from start to finish with heavy balls and smart play against the Commodores.
“Vanderbilt is a very tough and well coached team, which showed tremendously in the doubles,” said John Tougher, senior and team captain. “We knew going into it that we were in a win or learn situation, and we had nothing to lose.”
The overall score was 4-0. Sophomores Alejandro Manzanares, Thais Minet and Philippe Courteau lost their singles matches. Junior Rob Mitchell and sophomore Daniel Cardenas weren’t able to finish their singles matches. Three doubles teams played, finishing 6-2, 6-2 and 4-5.
Despite the loss, Hernandez said he has high hopes for the team as they start thinking about their next game against Murray State.
“Our ultimate goal is that we can use our strengths effectively and execute them in the right way,” Hernandez said. “Leading up to the Murray State match we have to put in some extra work on footwork and sharpen up our games as a whole, but I believe we are on the right path.”
Lipscomb has a full roster carrying on from the fall semester, as they added freshman George Wong and Cardenas in August.
The Bisons will host Murray State at Richland Country Club on Jan. 22 at 7 p.m., marking their first of nine home matches this season.
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