Men’s tennis finished the season with a 12-7 record overall and 0-3 in conference play. After losing to Ouachita Baptist 0-9 in a conference matchup on April 8, the team went on a three-match winning streak over the next two days, defeating University of the Ozarks, LeMoyne-Owen College and University of Arkansas Fort Smith with scores of 8-1, 9-0 and 5-4, respectively.
On April 12, they lost 4-5 to East Central University, and on April 15 they fell to Southeastern Oklahoma State University 3-6. Both teams are in-conference opponents. Today, the Bisons play in the GAC tournament starting at noon in Bentonville. Seeded fourth, they will face top seed Ouachita Baptist University. Ouachita is nationally ranked and defeated the Bisons 9-0 earlier this season. Despite the losses at the end of the season, sophomore Caleb McReynolds said he is excited to face Ouachita in the tournament.
“I enjoy playing against good competition,” McReynolds said. “I feel like we have a good chance of beating them if we play well in doubles.”
Senior player Adam Edwards said he also feels confident against Ouachita.
“I know they’re a good team,” Edwards said. “They beat us earlier in the season but matches were close and we gave them too much respect. We will be ready.”
Looking back on the season, Edwards said the team was not very far from achieving a higher level of success.
“I think what stands out the most is just how close we were to being the two seed instead of the four seed,” Edwards said. “We were one point away in one match and one game away in another that would have given us a better draw in the tournament.”
McReynolds said he has noticed the bonds among the players grow stronger this season, and that it has contributed to the team’s confidence and success.
“I feel like the guys’ team would do anything for each other,” McReynolds said. “I think we have learned that we can compete with the top teams and that beating them is not out of our reach.”
