The New Mexico men’s tennis team looks to build on the momentum of back-to-back wins when it hosts its next matches this weekend, including a doubleheader on Saturday.
Last Friday, the Lobos played a pair of matches at the McKinnon Family Tennis Center. New Mexico lost the opening doubles point to DePaul, but that didn’t seem to faze the team, as they responded to win all six singles matches en route to defeating DePaul 6-1.
In the evening, the Lobos earned a complete sweep of Utah, routing the Utes 7-0. Last Friday marked the first home matches for the team this season, and the wins improved the team’s overall record to 5-10.
Head coach Bart Scott said he is looking forward to Friday’s matchup against Brigham Young and playing two matches against Air Force on Saturday. He said only one of the two will count toward conference play, and it has not yet been decided which one.
BYU is a very strong team, Scott said, and even though the two schools are no longer in the same conference, they play each other every year in a rivalry that goes back decades.
He said BYU, is getting back some players who are returning from being on missions, and who will bring a lot of experience and wisdom to the court. Scott said the teams dealt each other big losses on each others’ home court in recent years, but normally things are tightly contested.
“In the history of our programs meeting, it is usually a really good, epic battle,” Scott said. “We are looking forward to another great one.”
BYU boasts an 11-1 record on the season, with its lone loss coming on the road to 48th ranked Denver, 3-4. Since then, the Cougars have reeled off four straight wins.
Scott said Air Force is a team that plays great doubles and is a high-energy squad. He said the Falcons have a never-say-die attitude and should be a great matchup.
Air Force suffered consecutive losses last weekend against Northern Arizona and Grand Canyon. They enter the weekend with a 4-7 overall record.
Scott said he has a ton of respect for both teams and their coaches. He said the Lobos will have to show great attention to detail and remain physically and mentally tough to compete against the schools.
“We want to defend our courts and be the best team in the region,” he said. “We have to be prepared to play our best tennis if we want to have chances to win against both teams.”
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
All three matches are scheduled to be played at the McKinnon Family Tennis Center, located just south of WisePies Arena. New Mexico begins play at 4:30 p.m. against BYU on Friday. On Saturday, the Lobos will face Air Force in a double header. The first match on Saturday against Air Force starts at 11 a.m., with the second match slated for a 5 p.m. start.
The team will remain in Albuquerque the following weekend, as it hosts the Mountain-Pacific Invitational on March 11-12.
Robert Maler is a freelance reporter for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @robert_maler.
