By Danny Brady
Although the official tennis season doesn’t start until spring, both Springfield College tennis programs are working hard in preparation. The fall program, featuring exhibition matches, tournaments and training, has begun.
“[The fall season] is truly all about match play and getting as many high-level matches in as we can,” said head coach Tanner Devarennes. “There is also more of an individualized focus on the players that go to the ITA (Intercollegiate Tennis Association) regionals, representing us at the highest level.”
This year, Springfield brought their top four men’s and women’s singles players to their respective ITA regionals, a yearly Division III singles and doubles tournament hosted every fall, featuring schools in the region. Kapom Vettayawaikoon, a sophomore on the women’s team, was one of the players who participated.
“[ITA Regionals] has been my favorite part of the fall season so far,” Vettayawaikoon said. “It was a really good chance to play against competitive schools and opponents outside of our conference.”
Tim Norin, a junior on the men’s team, has enjoyed working with new men’s graduate assistant Luka Rodic, this fall. Rodic, a Croatian native, competed in Division I tennis at IU Indianapolis last year.
“[Rodic] has brought a new depth and perspective to the team,” Norin said. “He still has the competitive mindset of a player, which makes the team work even harder to achieve our goals.”
DeVarennes has been impressed with the program’s early progress during the fall season, including the men’s program boasting a 2-0 record in scored matches. The team has only dropped one set thus far, beating Endicott 6-1 and sweeping UMass Boston 7-0.
“The attitudes have been so positive, and the team has worked so hard. Between the individual sessions and the team practices, there has been a high level of motivation and joy with this group,” he said.
The program culture has played a major role in this progress.
“[On the women’s team], we’re all very supportive and we take care of each other,” DeVarennes said. “We are a smaller team, so you get to know each individual person and we’ve all become really close.”
Devarennes has also seen a strong shift in the mentality of the program.
“We’re really mentally strong, and there’s no lapses in our concentration,” he said. “Each and every ball, each and every point, our mindset has been really strong.”
While the program on both the men’s and women’s sides has shown growth in many areas, there is always room for improvement.
“We still need to clean up our tactics, decision-making, and shot selection in both doubles and singles. We need to improve our daily habits as well. Those little things continue to add up, and we want to do the little things really well,” DeVarennes said.
As the fall season continues, both teams will be on the court this week. The women will face off against Colby-Sawyer on Oct. 2, while the men will host the Springfield Invitational on campus on Oct. 5.
“Our biggest goal is to get better each and every day and to not change that mindset. If we continue to work and get better, the results will take care of themselves.”
Photo courtesy of Springfield Athletics.