Expectations were high for the men’s tennis team after making it to the conference championships in 2012. The men did not meet their goals, but came out of the season with a few highlights along the way.
“We didn’t do as well as we could have,” said freshmen Lorne Bulling. “We’re a young team.”
Six freshmen joined the team this season. The six other players leading in experience were senior Kolin Wong, juniors Alan Suklje and Troy Zuroske and sophomores Giancarlo Battaglia and Brandon Schlack.
“Next year we want back in the conference championship,” said Bulling. “And to beat Lewis and Clark, PLU and Fox. We need to push each other more in practice so we can gain more experience.”
Highlights were seen in tandem double partners Battaglia, Bulling and Zuroske.
The Northwest Conference Student-Athlete of the Week award was given to Battaglia once and Zuroske twice this season.
Battaglia and Zuroske were also selected to the All-NWC men’s tennis first team.
This is Zuroske’s third time in a row being chosen for the programs first team.
Zuroske became the Boxers’ top player in singles with a 10-6 record, winning the last three of his four matches.
Battaglia’s season was right behind Zuroske’s with a 9-2 record in singles, winning five straight matches at the beginning of the season.
His season was cut short with an Achilles tendon injury, which forced him to sit out of the final match in the NWC.
The pair was just as skilled as doubles players. They won their first seven matches of the season.
And the highlights don’t stop there. Bulling and Zuroske traveled to Ojai, Calif. to compete in the Ojai Tournament April 26-28.
“We did pretty well,” said Bulling.
Bulling led the two Boxers as he advanced to round 16 in the men’s independent college singles.
Bulling closed his freshmen season with a 5-8 record in singles and 4-10 in doubles.
“Hopefully, we can go back next year and do better,” said Bulling.
The Boxers will spend more time preparing for next season.
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