Wolves Looking to Build Upon Success
The 2024-25 season saw the Wolves earn a national tournament appearance behind the strength of the top doubles pairing in the MACCC despite dropping a close match against Northwest in the Region 23 Tournament quarterfinals. Now the Wolves are looking to build upon that experience heading into the upcoming season and head coach Tripp Case says he's excited about this team's potential.
"I think the competitive spirit of the team has made practice feel different this season," stated Case. "This group is super competitive, and they have worked hard to close the gap, chase each other, and up the level of our play this season."
The roster features eight players split evenly between sophomores and freshmen. The four sophomores are Jake Bucek (Geelong, Australia), Nikoloz Gurgenidze (Tbilisi, Georgia), Mason Brand (Mantee), and Jax Leggett (Bogue Chitto). Coach Case says this group brings a ton of valuable experience from last season to this year's team.
"Jake Bucek was a player that at one point was Top 10 in the nation at doubles and is close to breaking the Top 30 in singles and he has made a lot of improvement to his already impressive game. I'm excited to see how much he will grow this season," said Case. "Jax Leggett is a player that came in clutch for us last season and stepped up to the plate when we lost Nikoloz Gurgenidze to an injury and he did not disappoint. I'm excited to see how those two along with Niko and Mason Brand continue to grow and take things to the next level for us."
"Niko is excited to be back out on the court after losing last season to an injury and he is finally starting to get back in the groove both mentally and physically. He's eager to show teams across the conference what he's got on the court and he's been out there playing with a chip on his shoulder so I'm excited for his potential this season," added Case.
The four freshmen for the Wolves are Lane Breland (Perkinston), Warren Lucio (Tupelo), James Rooks (Jackson), and Nick Tozer (Belrose, Australia). Case said this group has been special for the Wolves and he expects big things from them.
"James Rooks is a player that I think will have a high spot in our lineup this season. He's done a great job of getting used to the pace of college tennis and his experience in tournaments has been invaluable for his success. He plays with great technique, and I have high hopes for him," said Case. "Lane Breland is a player that developed a lot of chemistry with Jax Leggett in doubles over the fall and we saw them have success in the ITA Regional Tournament. I like what I'm seeing from him in the doubles games. Nick Tozer and Warren Lucio have also been showing a lot of growth, and we like what we have seen from them especially Nick who just came here at the start of the spring semester."
Case said he's excited about the potential of doubles pairings for the upcoming season too.
"Jake and Niko have been playing really well together since the fall, and they had a lot of success especially at ITA while Nick figures to be in one of those pairings too. Nick has one of the cleanest one-handed backhands I've ever seen, and he reminds me a lot of Arne Sohmer when he was here," added Case. "There's still a battle for a lot of those spots because Warren Lucio is a player that's in his first year competing, but he has really upped his level throughout the fall and training for the spring."
Case said that success for this season and getting to the national tournament looks like this for his team.
"We have raised the standard for our team, and I think that we have a very good chance at competing for one of those spots as well as one of the top spots in the conference," said Case. "We want to get there every year and have made that a baseline goal and I think we can as long as we come and hold our standard in each match we play."
The season starts for the Wolves with a home exhibition match against Alcorn State on Friday, January 30, with the first regular season match coming at home against East Central on Friday, February 20.