Team seeks redemption at Big Tens

The men's tennis team is hoping to improve its performance this weekend at the Big Ten Singles Championship in East Lansing, Mich. Coach Ken Hydinger said he was not pleased with the team's performance there two weeks ago at the Regional Championships.\n"We lost a lot of matches, for one thing," Hydinger said. "The objective of competition is to win. As you want your team to grow, you want to have successes. You can grow in ways; your conditioning is better, your shot is better. \n"The way you finally become a better tennis player is you beat better players, and that's where we want our team to improve."\nHydinger said the Hoosiers have been working hard in practice the past couple of weeks with mechanics, including serves, forehand patterns, conditioning and movement.\n"We've worked on staying aggressive with our serves, so that we can open the court and have a plan," Hydinger said. "When it gets tight, guys want to put the ball down the middle and play it safe, and you can't do that."\nThe players think the practice routines will help this weekend. By the end of the second day at the Region IV championships, all Hoosiers had been eliminated from the tournament. \nThat's something the players said they don't want to see this weekend.\n"I'm for sure gonna improve on how I did two weekends ago," senior Rahman Smiley said. "I've been playing more practice matches."\nThe team has gone through strenuous routines in practice since the region championships, but the physical part of the game isn't the only thing that has been addressed in practice.\n"I want to put myself together, in regards to my mental thinking," senior Milan Rakvica said. "I want to think out the match, do the little things to make the match go your way. I feel really good about my game right now."\nWhile Hydinger is looking for an overall team improvement this weekend in South Bend, he said the team has been focusing on specific aspects of the game.\n"The primary thing we've been working on is keeping the constancy of pressure on," Hydinger said. "It's not just a battle of skill, but it's a battle of will. It's a battle of concentration. This is a good test."\nHydinger has also used methods off the court to help the team for this weekend. He has implemented magazine articles and videos into the practice schedule to inspire his team to play better against tough, nationally ranked competition.\n"This tournament is not only a chance to get results and have our team grow. It's also a chance when the money's on the line to do what you have to do," he said. "We would like to be able to keep our emotional forces positive and constantly directed. We would like that guy to break down mentally and emotionally"