Simpson Men’s Tennis will open their 2022 campaign on Feb. 12 against Midland University in Fremont, Nebraska. The team finished sixth in the conference last spring and is looking forward to another successful season. 

Peter Walkwitz, a senior on the team, is trying to keep a realistic view of how the season is going to go. 

“I think it’s going to be hard because one of the teams that we beat last year that we need to beat again this year got some good players so we’re going to have to pick it up to beat them,” he said. 

Walkwitz is the top-ranked singles player on the team and earned bronze at the American Rivers Conference tournament last year. He’ll be continuing his career as a singles player this year as well as playing doubles with junior Ethan Humble. 

Walkwitz stresses that regardless of ranks, the team is evenly skilled across all players. 

“Our team is really close in skill level so our number one [player] right now might not be our number one in three months which I think is really good because we push each other to keep getting better or else we’re going to lose our spot,” he said. 

Head Coach Matt Price pointed out that while the team may not be as talented as other teams in the state, they’re willing to work hard to get results. 

“We’ll compete hard. We’ll play every point and we won’t quit until the last point has been finished so I know my team will compete throughout the whole match and that’s a strength that we have,” he said. Price pointed out that tennis is a sport which requires significant mental toughness at every level. 

“We’re mentally tough so when things get tough in a match, our guys are getting more and more confident playing in those points that matter,” he said.

Junior Caleb Vasconez is just excited to get back to playing tennis. 

“I feel good, I feel like we’re really getting into the groove now that everyone is back,” he said. 

Another thing Coach Price stressed was the team’s physicality compared to other schools in the conference.

“We’re very competitive, we’re athletic, and we’re going to use that,” he said. He hopes that better conditioning will allow the Simpson team to compete against athletes who may be more technically skilled than the storm players. 

The team is fighting for the fifth seed at the conference tournament this year and the biggest improvement they have to help them compared to last year is growth in clutch moments and stepping up when it’s most important.

“One or two points can make or break a match and we’re getting a lot better at winning those points so that’s going to hopefully get us over the hump,” Price said. 

Students interested in supporting the men’s tennis team will have to wait until March 5 for the first home match of the season which will be against Central College. The women’s tennis team will begin competition in April.