The Terrapins men’s tennis team hopes to snap its three-game losing streak this weekend, when it welcomes Florida State today and Miami on Sunday at the Cole Field House Tennis Courts.
The Terps (4-11, 1-4 ACC) lost a pair of matches on the road last weekend to No. 64 Clemson and No. 62 Georgia Tech. Friday, the Terps lost, 4-2, to the Tigers, and Sunday, 4-3, to the Yellow Jackets. The team was, however, the first to defeat Georgia Tech in doubles play since Feb. 25.
Going into this weekend, No. 28 Florida State (15-4, 6-0) has won four of its past five matches; its only loss came against No. 21 Oklahoma. No. 51 Miami (8-6, 1-4), on the other hand, is looking for its second straight ACC win against Boston College today.
Although the Terps’ struggles in singles play have continued over the losing streak, their doubles play has steadily improved on all three courts. Senior Maros Horny and junior John Collins defeated Clemson’s then-No. 53 pair, 8-5, on Friday. The two also upset Georgia Tech’s then No.-4 duo, 8-5, on Sunday.
It was the pair’s third consecutive victory over a ranked doubles team, an effort that was rewarded when the ITA ranked the duo No. 24. In addition to Horny and Collins, junior Tommy Laine and freshman Vlad Stefan are 8-2 and have won five in a row, while juniors Jesse Kiuru and Andy Magee are 8-3.
The women’s team, currently on a six-game losing streak, also has two matches this weekend, as it travels to Florida to play Florida State today and finishes the weekend set against Miami on Sunday.
The No. 69 Terps (6-9, 0-5) are 3-3 away from College Park and 3-8 against nationally ranked opponents. The team dropped a pair of matches last week by the score of 5-2 to No. 21 Georgia Tech and No. 23 Clemson at home.
The No. 37 Seminoles (9-6, 2-3 ACC) claimed three wins last week against then-No. 39 TCU on Wednesday, 5-2, and two more victories against NC State and Wake Forest. The No. 5 Hurricanes (14-1, 6-0) have not lost since Feb. 10 and are entering the match following three conference wins against No. 21 Georgia Tech, Wake Forest and NC State.
While the Terps have improved their play in doubles, winning the point in their last three matches, they’ve struggled in singles play. Still, sophomore Cristina Stancu moved to No. 31 in the ITA National College Rankings this week. She’s 10-5 this spring, including a victory over Virginia’s then-No. 15 Emily Fraser.
walker@umdbk.com
