After getting waxed in two matches this weekend at home, the Stanford men’s tennis team will try to bounce back against Hawaii on Tuesday.
The No. 6 Cardinal dropped lopsided contests to USC and UCLA this past weekend, getting handed 7-0 and 6-1 losses, respectively, and needs a bounce-back victory in a major way.
“The best way to describe it was painful,” said senior captain Bradley Klahn about the Cardinal’s performance. “It leaves a bitter taste in our mouths. USC and UCLA are such a big rivalry, and in my three years, every match has been hotly contested … So to come out and lose 12 singles matches this weekend and to put one point on the board, it hurts.”
Klahn, who has been sidelined so far this season with a back injury, said the disappointing weekend should act as a major wake-up call for the Cardinal as it launches into the heart of its spring schedule.
“I hope everyone takes away from this that they don’t want to see that happen again, especially on our home courts,” Klahn said. “I think it’d be hard to find a time where Stanford’s lost 7-0 at home in their history.
“Just to see USC taking a picture of the scoreboard, it’s irritating, and it should irritate all the guys on the team,” he continued. “I hope it motivates us to dig a little deeper and gut out one or two more balls late in that third set the next time we play them.”
In contrast to the Cardinal’s recent performances, Hawaii is coming off its biggest win of the season, a 4-3 upset of No. 61 Saint Mary’s on Sunday—but history suggests that Stanford should have little trouble in this matchup.
Over Thanksgiving, the Cardinal dominated the Rainbow Warriors, 7-0, in an exhibition match in Hawaii. Stanford was missing its top two players—seniors Ryan Thacher and Klahn—and still came away with the victory in a dominant performance. Additionally, Hawaii had dropped three straight matches before its upset of Saint Mary’s, including a 7-0 defeat at the hands of the No. 14 Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Klahn said that even though the Cardinal has a good history against the squad from the Aloha State, the team should understand the gravity of Tuesday’s match.
“We had a good start to the season, winning two matches in Tulsa against a good Tulsa and North Carolina team, and we got knocked down pretty hard this weekend,” he said. “So I think it’s pretty important for the guys to not overlook anyone at this point and come prepared for the match tomorrow.”
The Cardinal and the Rainbow Warriors square off today at 1:30 p.m. at the Taube Family Tennis Center.