Elliot Yee and Stefan Lugonjic were battling. Battling in a third set tiebreak Monday in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Summer Circuit Midwest finals.
The tiebreak was tied at nine points apiece, the next player to gain a two point lead would win the set, the match and more importantly, the tournament.
Yee won those next two points — the final being a Lugonjic forehand beyond the baseline — to win.
A few minutes later, Yee and Lugonjic were laughing and joking with each other. Yee, a senior, and Lugonjic, a junior, were more than competitors vying for a title.
They are both Hoosiers, teammates who reached the finals in the 128-player tournament field.
“It was great because we’re teammates and we know each other really well,” Lugonjic said. “It was an overall great match and congrats, Yee, for that great week. I’m also happy with the week I had, I’m happy with the result.”
Senior Chris Essick was also there, laughing with Yee and Lugonjic after the match.
Essick had also played in the tournament and lost in the semifinals to Yee, also in a third set tiebreak.
Essick is also the doubles partner of Lugonjic, a duo that in a few more hours would win the doubles championship.
In total, Lugonjic played five matches Monday — two singles matches and three doubles matches. Essick played four in a matter of hours.
The Hoosier résumé in the ITA Summer Circuit Midwest finals: a singles champion, three of four singles semifinalists and the doubles champions.
“I think it’s a testament to the work we put on court but also how close we are,” Yee said. “We encourage each other on and off the court, and we want the best for each other because we’re teammates, we’re roommates and we’re mates in general.”
That has made the largest difference for the Hoosiers this summer compared to previous summers, Yee said. IU has a history of success in summer tournaments.
Senior Sam Monette won the national ITA summer title last year, a title IU will have the opportunity to defend in the national tournament next month in Bloomington.
But if a Hoosier does win, he will do so with a different coach, with a different mentality driving him.
This summer has been different than any before because of what has happened off the court between the Hoosiers.
New IU Coach Jeremy Wurtzman was hired in December, and things have been different in his first offseason in charge compared to previous years.
“Since Coach Wurtzman came it’s a lot of fun, a lot more bonding,” Lugonjic said. “We have more time to spend together and this summer a bunch of guys stayed. We all practice together, go eat together, just have fun together.”
Team meals, even team chess tournaments, have created a bond among the group of five or six Hoosiers currently in Bloomington, Yee said. A bond that didn’t exist in previous years.
This bond off the court helps on the court, Yee said.
“On the court we’re okay with battling or ultimately losing because those are our teammates and we want the best, and we’re going to give everything we’ve got for them to get better,” Yee said.
This is a new age of IU tennis, Yee said, one led by a coach who emphasizes relationships off the court as much as performance on the court.
This season IU will try to qualify for the NCAA Tournament after missing the previous two seasons. With a group of five seniors and two juniors, the goal seems attainable.
“We went through tough years in the past couple years and now we have like a fresh start with a new mentality and new outlook on how we approach tennis and how we approach school and our friendships,” Yee said. “It’s a new dawn, it’s a brave new world-type feeling.”
