Hoosiers ready for Sin City tournament

The Hoosiers are back.

After a 67-day hiatus following freshman Josh MacTaggart’s Big Ten Singles Championship, the IU men’s tennis team returns to the court today as it prepares for the spring season.

The Hoosiers are in Las Vegas for the University of Nevada-Las Vegas Invitational, one of the final individual tournaments before the regular season is underway Jan. 30 vs. Columbia.

One of the high points of the Hoosiers’ fall season was MacTaggart’s spectacular run to a Big Ten title on Nov. 2. The United Kingdom native lost only one match in the fall and put major pressure on IU coach Randy Bloemendaal to place him in the lineup during the spring.

But his late fall success didn’t only give him confidence; it also helped motivate his entire team. The Hoosiers worked out hard over break so they could compete for a Big Ten title this season.

While only individual results will be counted at the UNLV Invitational, it will have somewhat of a team feel to it.

The tournament features a round-robin “hidden dual” format with four teams competing against one another. The Hoosiers open play at 1:30 p.m. today against No. 73 UNLV. IU players at all positions will compete against UNLV.

That process will repeat itself when the Hoosiers compete against No. 18 Alabama on Saturday and No. 20 Louisville on Sunday.

IU will play only one of those teams during the regular season (Louisville) but could see the other two in the NCAA Tournament.

MacTaggart climbing in ITA rankings
MacTaggart might only be a freshman, but his success has already been recognized by the International Tennis Association. He is the only Hoosier singles player ranked in the top 125 nationally, as he enters the spring season at No. 119. Sophomores Jeremy Langer and Maxime Armengaud are ranked 50th in doubles.

Meet the Hoosiers on the IU Web site
The IU Athletics Web site (www.iuhoosiers.cstv.com) now features a set of one-on-one interview videos with men’s tennis players with Sports Information Director Kyle Johnson. A series of videos called “At the Net” – where Johnson asks players questions about things such as their favorite foods – allows Hoosier fans to get to know some of the players and their hobbies away from the game.