The Auburn men’s tennis team is set to host the ITA Southern Regionals, spanning from Friday, Oct. 14 to Monday, Oct. 17. This will be the Tigers only action on The Plains this fall, coming after a trio of invitationals for Auburn in the weeks prior. Select players from the team competed in the Duke Bonk Invitational in Durham, North Carolina, the ITA All-American in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and the Georgia Tech Invite in Atlanta, Georgia.
Auburn is under first year head coach Bobby Reynolds. Reynolds coached with the Oklahoma Sooners last season, helping lead the team to the NCAA Championship Match.
“We’ve been working on a lot of different things in the fall, and the guys did a good job of implementing that in a match play, pressure filled situations,” Reynolds said. “I think we may have taken a bit of a step back in Tulsa, not trusting what we’ve been working on, but the week back has been good and we’re excited to move forward.
“There are a lot of positives. Fall competition gives us a chance to use these next three to four months to work on our game, and analyze things that need refining. Fall is used to go out, try different things at these tournaments, see how it works, then come back and tweak those things, that way in the spring, everything is second nature.”
Auburn’s display of talent has been versatile thus far. Freshman Carles Sarrio claimed the Black singles bracket championship at the Duke Bonk Invitational with victories over players from North Carolina, North Carolina State, Elon and North Florida. Seniors Maxime Hinnisdaels and Connor Huertas del Pino won the White doubles bracket championship in Durham.
Brandon Laubser and Edward Nguyen paired up to finish 2-1 in doubles at the Georgia Tech Invitational, while Huertas del Pino finished 3-1 in singles at that event.
“All of them are talented,” Reynolds said. “I can look up and down the roster, and no matter what guy it is, I can pinpoint something that they do really well. It’s just a matter of using those strengths when you’re out on the court. The guys understand the philosophy behind it, however there were many times in match settings where we could have implemented it a little better. There’s always room to improve.”
The 2017 team has an uphill battle to contest this spring. Auburn finished last in the SEC West in the spring of 2016 and second to last in the conference.
“I want 100 percent, win lose or draw,” Reynolds said. “Every time we step out onto the court. Whether it’s practice, a match, individuals, working out, lifting, or conditioning, can you look at yourself in the mirror at the end of each day and say that you gave 100 percent of what you had in you. That’s what we as coaches ask everyday out of them.”
The Tigers have three more fall invitationals after the ITA Southern Regionals to compete in, from Nov. 3 to Nov. 6. Auburn opens up spring play at UCF on Jan. 22 and begins SEC play at home against Mississippi State on March 5 at the Yarbrough Tennis Center.
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