Carolina blues: Hoosiers hope to ace N.C. teams

For the second straight weekend, the No. 56 Hoosiers will head south to face two quality opponents.\nOn Friday, the IU men’s tennis team will travel to Raleigh, N.C., to face Charlotte. Saturday will be a day of rest and preparation for the Hoosiers as they will then take on No. 30 North Carolina State on Sunday. \nLast weekend, IU defeated Troy by a score of 5-2 on Saturday and then fell to No. 20 Alabama on Sunday, 6-1. \n“We are going through a tough process right now,” IU coach Randy Bloemendaal said. “We have to shift the way we think and approach the game. I didn’t see a gap in the talent level last weekend (against Alabama).”\nThe matches against Troy and Alabama were the first outdoor matches of the season for the Hoosiers. The team has been limited to practicing indoors because of the cold weather conditions in Bloomington. \nIn their match against Alabama ,the Hoosiers dropped their first doubles contest of the season. \n“A lot of the problem in doubles play was our mindset coming into the match,” freshman Lachlan Ferguson said. “We didn’t adjust our depth and we also need to make subtle court positioning changes.”\nFerguson, who usually pairs with senior Thomas Richter, has been crucial to the Hoosiers’ success in doubles play. He and Richter have combined for a 7-2 record this season and have only surrendered more than four games to one of their opponents. \nFerguson, an Adelaide, Australia native, will look to improve upon his own 7-2 record in singles play this weekend as well. \n“I need to play further back on the outdoor courts,” Ferguson said. “I also have to learn to be more patient, let the game come to me and use my volleys when I can.”\nCharlotte, the defending Atlantic 10 conference champions, enter the match with a 4-7 record after its winning three of their last five contests. \n“We won’t have an opportunity to practice outdoors before the match,” freshman Phillip Eilers said. “Court and weather adjustments will have to be made just prior to the match.”\nAgainst Troy, Coach Bloemendaal placed Eilers in the No. 3 slot for the first time all season. He defeated his opponent, Guilherme Sahadi, handily 6-3, 6-4. Returning to the No. 2 slot against Alabama, Eilers lost to Mat Thibaudeau in a three-set match, 1-6, 7-6, 2-6. \n“I need to be more aggressive on the court,” Eilers said. “I have to control the baseline so that I can dictate the points.”\nNorth Carolina State recently defeated No. 39 Old Dominion on the road by a score of 5-2. The Wolfpack enters the contest against the Hoosiers with a 5-3 record and will face Navy on Saturday before taking on IU.\n“Playing outdoors, I feel that each week will be better than the previous,” Bloemendaal said. “We are going to play better this weekend.”