Men's ITA's, Lady Hawks mid-season form

Good morning Warhawk tennis fans,

I am intrigued by our men's team this year. The team is balanced with senior, junior, and sophomore returning players who have lots of college playing experience; and our freshman class who have prior high level USTA tournament experience. Our players are pushing each other every day in practice both physically but mentally, which can only make us stronger when it's time to put it all out there in a team match.

The men left this past Thursday for St. Peter, MN for the Regional ITA Fall Championships. We had all 16 Warhawks in the main singles and doubles draws this past weekend. I would like to first acknowledge our men for their efforts this weekend, for almost half of them it was their first ITA. The only hopes I had for them this past weekend was to see everybody put 100% on the court. The Warhawks did not disappoint.

Congratulations to seniors Jake Humphreys and Michael Treis for winning the doubles draw. The draw consisted of 64 total doubles teams, so Jake and Michael had to win 6 straight to claim the title. Jake and Michael did a number of things really well to be successful this past weekend.

• Never took any team they played for granted
• Showed great communication
• Positive energy with each other
• Were not phased by opponents making runs in their matches
• Basic doubles Serve and Return percentages were HIGH 

Enjoy match point 

The men are now headed into their fall training. From now till January, Frank and I will not be able to coach/hit with the guys in practices or matches. It will be interesting to see who works the hardest this fall off season. I would like to all of our guys take their games to the next level from now till the start of the spring season. Again, reps are so important in tennis, hitting lots of tennis balls, and playing matches that actually mean something, are ways that the Warhawks can improve. Who will raise their game, and who will fall thru the cracks? 

The Lady Warhawks are in the middle of their conference season sprinkled with some non conference play. The team went to Stevens Point this past week and won 9-0. UW-Oshkosh and Elmhurst come to Whitewater Tuesday, followed by the Warhawk Fall invite this weekend. The Lady Warhawks look to keep fine tuning their skills and improve their match play before the WIAC Conference Championship in Madison (October 24th and 25th).  

Balkin 

Bloggin with Balkin and ITA Talk

This is Byron Balkin, the new blogger on the Warhawk Tennis Blog Spot. I am blogging to give the readers what they want... the inside scoop on UWW tennis. My entries will range in subject topics, such Warhawk results, coaching thoughts, and general tennis stuff. Remember, I graduated with a degree in science and business, not english, so my grammar, punctuation and flow might not be spectacular, but I am sure you will understand what I am trying to get across with my casual writing style. 

The season has been well underway for a while now. The Women started in mid August, while the men started in early September. The Women have had a great start with a 6-0 record. Gabi Kitchell is our only freshman this year, and she has made an impact on the team and has helped our results thus far. Last weekend the Lady Warhwaks took home both the regional singles and doubles titles at ITA's at Gustavis in St. Peter Minnesota. . ITA's is an individual tournament comprised of 8 regional sites. The winners are crowned All-American Status and earn a bid into the Small College Championships in Sumter, South Carolina with all the other regional winners. Congratulations so Megan Humphreys who took out Gabi Kitchell of Whitewater in the ITA singles final. And congratulations to Alicia Beck and partner Jillian Wallace who also took out teammates, Megan Humphreys and Bridgid McGuire of Whitewater in the ITA doubles final.

Note: I do really like ITA's because it gives our players a chance to get great competition. Leading up to the tournament, the players strive to improve and fine tune their skills. Players during practice are extra focused and have an edge to them. As a coach this is great to see. Often before and during the tournament players think about winning the tournament and attain All-American Status. Thinking about the end result like winning a tournament can be detrimental to a players success. I suggest players look at ITA's as a chance to get in alot of matches, try to play there best tennis and see what happens in each round. *** At the end of the day, the Warhawks have to remember that there are much more important goals we have to accomplish out there as a TEAM then winning ITA's as an INDIVIDUAL and becoming an All-American.

The men are off to ITA's this weekend where they are looking to put together some good tennis. This is an interesting year for the men because they are all playing in the ITA draw, none are playing in the Midwest Invite. I am very eager to see how the men compete this weekend in Minnesota. 

Thats it for now. 

Balkin 

Season ends with a great Humphreys run!

The Warhawk Tennis season came to an end last week at the D-3 NCAA individual championships.  Megan Humphreys and Jake Humphreys (both now 2 tiime singles All-Americans and Jake a doubles All-American) each qualified for the NCAA singles tournament, a draw of the top 32 players in the nation. First of all, I could not have been more proud to call myself the coach of these two wonderful players.  They represented our program and University with class all season-on and off the court. Before going into the details, check out the following links: This is a must see, as Fox6 Sports came to campus prior to us leaving for the tournament to do a story on the Humphreys siblings.  Check out their interview at; http://fox6now.com/2015/05/20/it-would-be-a-dream-come-true-uw-whitewater-brothersister-tennis-combo-hoping-for-national-championships/ Go to our Warhawk Tennis Facebook page to check out some photos from the trip at https://www.facebook.com/?_rdr#!/media/set/?set=a.864986046889987.1073741896.119813758073890&type=1  There are some cool videos of a couple of Jake's play including match point of his opening match taking out the #6 seed.  You should like our page, so you get all our future updates as well. Here are a few more Humphreys Family photos.  https://www.facebook.com/?_rdr#!/media/set/?set=a.864986046889987.1073741896.119813758073890&type=1 Now onto the details.  The tournament was held at the site of the ATP tournament in near Cincinatti callled the Southern and Western Open, so the facilities were awesome!  We drove down on Tuesday and got there in time to watch the men's semis of the team tournament.  Then we had an evening practice.  Zane and his Dad, and Bridgid were there for suppport and to experience the tournament as well.  On Wednesday it was a two-a-day practice session for the Humphreys and we had some fun with some of the tournament gala.  Then on Thursday it was down to action. Compeition started with Megan.  Megan is the third person in school history to qualify for this tournament in singles (Schaefer and Bayliss also did recently).  She unfortunetly ran into a terrifiic player from Bowdoin who made an impressive run eventually losing in the championship match 7-5 in the third.  Megan score was a 6-2, 6-1.  For the Day 1 story, go to: http://uwwsports.com/news/2015/5/21/MTEN_0521155132.aspx So now our hoped turned to Jake and he did not disappoint.  On day 1 for him, he took out the big hitting #6 seed Adam Krull from Trinity (TX) 7-6(4), 6-4, then knocked out Skidmore 6-3, 6-3.  This gave Jake a spot in the coveted quaterfinals, no other Warhawk in history had ever been there in singles.  He was toe to toe with the #4 seeded player Michael Buxbaum, from Johns Hopkins, but fell 7-5, 6-4 to put an end to the dream run. We are already looking forward to next season.  Both the Humphreys will be returning along with so many key pieces from this years teams the made deep runs. Also both teams have huge recruits that look to be difference makers coming in as freshen and transfers. Don't forget to follow us on twitter at @uwwtennis. In addition to getting our in-progress match updates, we can update you this summer on camp activities and community service endeavors. Thank you to all of you that make up Warhawk Tennis Nation!  Can't wait to see where this train is headed! GO WARHAWKS!!

Jake and Megan Humphreys NCAA video

Check out this video created to send off Megan and Jake to the NCAA singles championship tournament!

Men and women’s teams in NCAA tournament again

The UW-Whitewater men and women each competed in the NCAA tournament this weekend.  The men hosted a six team regional at Whitewater.  It was their 9 consecutive trip to the big dance.  The women traveled to Greencastle, IN where #1 seed DePauw hosted.   It was the women’s eighth straight NCAA tournament trip. 

The men started with a 5-0 win over Edgewood College on Friday.  For all the scores for this match, go to http://uwwsports.com/news/2015/5/8/_0508150358.aspx To see a great video from this match, go to:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSl69pH56So  This win put us in the round of 32 vs familiar foe, Gustavus Adolphus.  Doubles was  intense all around, and Humphreys/Shklyar were able to knock off the #1 doubles team in the region 8-6, while Laktash/Beck lost a tight battle at #2 8-6.  On the third line, Schnarr/Raman lost to an on-fire team 2-8.  In singles the fight was on with the Hawks down 1-2.  First off was Shklyar at #4, but the rest of the matches were dogfights, including 4 three setters and a tight 7-5, 6-4 loss from Schnarr at #6.  Navratil lost his three-setter to give Gustavus 5 points and the match was stopped with Jake, Raman, and Cam all battling in their third sets.  To see all the scores from this battle, go to: http://uwwsports.com/news/2015/5/9/MTEN_0509151552.aspx

The women reached the third round (sweet sixteen) for the 4^th time in school history with wins over Grove City College (PA) http://uwwsports.com/news/2015/5/7/WTEN_0507150228.aspx and a thriller against Hope College http://uwwsports.com/news/2015/5/8/WTEN_0508153030.aspx   Let me tell you about the drama in this one.  Hope has great doubles, and Wallace/Beck were able to keep us in the match with their quick win at #2.  We lost at 1 and 3, so we were down 1-2 heading into singles.  Wallace was next off the court with a loss at #4, so we were now down 1-3 and in need of a win.  McGuire was the one that shifted the momentum for us with an impressive 6-1, 7-6 win at #2.  Humphreys then joined the action with a straight sets win over NCAA qualifier Nancy Benda.  So we were tied 3-3 with three 3-set matches going.  We needed two of them, and Beck obliged winning her third set 6-3.  She was up 5-1 then things got tight before she came up with a huge service game to win.  So now Alex Talyansky was at 4-4 in her third set and Dick was down 1-2 in hers.  Talyansky was in a marathon game, while Amanda Dick took a 4-2 lead.  Then Alex’s opponent took an injury time out after Taly took the 5-4 lead at the same time Amanda was up 5-3.  Amanda ended up sealing the deal with a great ground game when Alex was serving at 30all.  The team mobbed Amanda, who used her senior experience to give the team the huge win.  This now put us in the regional final against host and #1 seed, DePauw.  We came out the final day just a little flat, and DePauw was fired up with a huge crowd.  The Tigers played some great doubles and took a 3-0 lead.  There would be no big comebacks on this day, but we had many nice sets and some tight matches were still on when DePauw won 5-0.  To see all those scores, go to: http://uwwsports.com/news/2015/5/9/WTEN_0509151510.aspx

The end of this weekend means the end of team competition for the year.  But siblings Jake and Megan Humphreys continue on to the NCAA singles tournament next week in Mason, OH near Cincinnati where the ATP tournament the Western and Southern Open is played.  We are looking forward to playing on that facility.

Last week we had our annual team banquet at Cravath Lake Park in Whitewater.  It was a great celebration of two great seasons and I could not have been more proud!  See below for banquet photos. 

Both men and women finish regular season on high note!

The men and women both had impressive weekends finishing their regular seasons on a high note, and now await the opportunity for NCAA post season play.

The women hosted and won the WIAC conference’s Final 4 Automatic Qualifying Tournament on Saturday with wins over UW-Oshkosh and UW-La Crosse earning their 8^th consecutive trip to the NCAA team tournament.  The winner of this past weekend’s tournament receives the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.  Due to inclement weather the tournament was moved indoors to Premier Tennis and Fitness in Janesville. The tournament brings the top four teams from the fall season’s conference championships. It pairs the top seed vs the #4 seed and the #2 vs #3.  Therefore, since we won conference in the fall we hosted and were the top seed and faced UW-Oshkosh, while UWL took on UWEC.  The seeds held up as UWW beat UWO 5-0 and UWL beat UWEC 5-3 (semifinal matches were just played to decision).  Then the Lady Hawks took on UWL in the finals and won 7-2.  Megan Humphreys was able to knock off Bridget Bellisimo 6-3, 6-0 and now waits to hear if she qualifies for the NCAA individual tournament.  Amanda Dick was honored as our lone senior on Senior Day between matches.  Thank you Amanda for all your brought to our team!! For all the scores, a more detailed story, and some photos, go to: http://uwwsports.com/news/2015/4/22/wten_042515_WIACAQ.aspx

Then on Sunday the men had their hands full trying to build a strong case for their 9^th consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament.  They do not have an automatic bid, but can get in with an at-large pool B bid.  They faced Coe College and Elmhurst College and came away with 7-2 and 8-1 wins to add to their NCAA resume.  The highlight of this match was Treis and Shklyar coming back down 5-7 to break twice for the 9-7 win!  They along with Jake Humphreys also wait to hear from the selection committee on their NCAA individual fate. Laktash and Shklyar both earned key victories in the Coe match and were honored for their accomplishments on Senior Day between matches as well.  For all the scores and a more detailed story, go to: http://uwwsports.com/news/2015/4/26/MTEN_0426154959.aspx

The women are in, and the men wait to hear official word on Selection Monday, May 4^th.  At that time both teams find out if we will be hosting the first three rounds, or if they will be on the road.  The first three rounds are played on Monday 8-10 at a site still to be determined.  If either/both teams make it through the first three rounds, they would play the final three rounds starting with the elite 8 at Linder Stadium in Mason OH (Cincinnati), the site of the Southern and Western Open ATP tournament on May 18-20. 

For individuals (Jake, Megan, Ben/Treis), they find out on Wed May 6^th if they get selected to the NCAA tournament.  That is also played at Linder Stadium in Mason OH (Cincinnati), the site of the Southern and Western Open ATP tournament on May 21-23.

Until then we are practicing hard and getting ready for finals!!!  GO WARHAWKS!! 

UWW Men and Women go 5-0 on the weekend.

The men and women were both in action this past weekend and went a combined 5-0. 

The men again dominated their WIAC final 4 tournament (hosted at UWEC) beating UWOsh 9-0, UWLax 8-1, and UWEC 8-1.  This was the 10^th time in the past 11 years that the Warhawk men finished at the top of the conference!  We used a variety of lineups to complete the task this weekend, so to see the details and the individual match scores, please go to: http://www.uwwsports.com/index.aspx?tab=tennis&path=mten

The women were a bit of a MASH unit in a pair of home wins with several of our top players dealing with injuries from the tough competition over the past couple of weekends.  The Lady Hawks were still able to take out Carthage 7-2 and Carroll 8-1.  Megan Humphreys and Amanda Dick were out of action completely.  Bridgid McGuire could not play in the second match after she aggravated her injury and Alex Talyansky was able to muscle through the first match and then doubles of the second match, but could not play singles in the second match.  All the players that were called upon to move up some spots or step into the lineup did a tremendous job and it showed our incredible depth.  Against Carroll University Jillian Wallace moved all the way up to the #1 singles spot and almost took out one of the top players in the region before falling in three sets.  Also it was key to get two 3-0 leads from our doubles teams.  That was impressive, since we need to do some last minute shuffling and try some new combinations.  To see all other highlights and individual scores, go to: http://www.uwwsports.com/news/2015/4/18/WTEN_0418155046.aspx

Once again, no rest for the weary!  This upcoming weekend we are at full tilt again, with both teams playing at home on the Ron Wangerin Stadium Courts.  On Saturday the women compete in their WIAC final four AQ (automatic qualifier) tournament.  The winner of this weekend’s tournament gets the conference’s automatic bid into the NCAA tournament.  The men play a pair of strong regional foes on Sunday, Coe and Elmhurst.  Coe is always one of the team’s biggest rivals, so we are expecting a great match!

Saturday: Women play UW-Osh at noon and then face either UWLax or UWEC at 3pm.

Sunday: Men play Coe at 10am and then Elmhurst at 2pm.

Senior Day(s): The women will recognize Amanda Dick on Saturday between matches and the men will recognize Cam Laktash and Ben Shklyar between matches on Sunday as our seniors play in their last home matches of the regular season.

In the event of poor weather we will move matches to Premier Tennis in Fitness in Janesville, WI.

Both teams play nationally ranked teams in St Louis

The UW-Whitewater Men’s and Women’s team traveled to St Louis together this past weekend for a quad that pitted all four nationally ranked programs in a round robin.  Some of the matches were held at host Washington University’s courts and some were at Dwight Davis Tennis Center.

The teams were UWW (Men ranked #25, Wom ranked #28), Univ Texas-Tyler (#19, #38), Univ Chicago (#13, #15), Washington University (#5, #11).  To see all individual scores/lineups, go to:

Women’s site: http://uwwsports.com/index.aspx?tab=tennis2&path=wten 

Men’s site: http://uwwsports.com/index.aspx?tab=tennis&path=mten 

On Saturday morning each team took on UT-Tyler.  The men were tied at 1-1 in doubles so the all important lead came down to #2.  We were down a break, and broke back to send the match to a tiebreak.  In the tiebreak, we were down 3-6, but Humphreys/Laktash won 5 straight points to secure the comeback and the team lead heading into singles.  In singles we had many dogfights.  Treis played flawless tennis and won in straights, while Navratil, Raman, and Shklyar all went to three sets.  Raman was the first of the three setters to come off with a win, then Shklyar sealed the team win.  Navratil lost 11-9 in his third set match tiebreak for a 5-4 overall win.  The women took a 3-0 lead with some great doubles play with a brand new doubles lineup.  Megan Humphreys was then pulled from the singles lineup due to her hip injury.  Without her the match tightened up, but we were able to come up with the two solid wins to take a 5-2 lead.  McGuire played great all weekend including her 6-4, 6-4 win here at #1, then Beck clinched with a third set win at #5.  Dick and Siemon each lost after the clinch in 3^rd set battles, so it ended up 5-4 in the Warhawks favor.

On Saturday afternoon each team faced Wash U.  The men stayed in the match with a win at #3 doubles.  Raman/Schnarr have been burning it up at 3!  At 2, Humphreys/Laktash were up a break when Laktash’s back started acting up, but it was WashU’s play that finished them off.  We lost at #1 to last year’s NCAA semifinalists, so this put us down 1-2 heading into singles.  With Laktash out, Schnarr stepped in at 6.  Treis picked up another great win at 2 over Jeremy Busch, while Navratil lost at #3 to Kratky, and Shklyar went down after suffering through cramps all match at #5.  We were down 2-4 at this point, but Humphreys, Raman and Schnarr were all even, and heading into third sets.  If we could figure a way to win them all, we would pull off the monumental upset.  Jake ended up losing to his HS team mate Carswell and Raman’s opponent caught third set fire.  Schnarr played amazing, but lost in a match tiebreak  11-9.  The women again played some amazing doubles against one of the top doubles lineups in the nation.  They lost all three, but I was happy with the performance of all three teams as they all pushed their opponents at each line.  In singles we had some solid performances from Humphreys, McGuire, and Talyansky, but they also fell short.  It was a great experience to play this team for our lineup littered with freshmen and sophomores.

On Sunday the teams woke up and took on the U Chicago Maroons.  The guys won at #2 doubles again, but fell at 1 and 3.  We had a very tight match between the regions top players Humphreys and Chua, but lost 6-4, 6-4.  We also had three set losses from Raman and Laktash.  Schnarr played well again, but lost 7-5, 6-3.  The women also played well, especially in doubles.  We had leads at 1 and 3 throughout the match, but lost in the end of both of those 8-6.  #2D made a late charge, but in the end lost 8-5.  I’m very happy with the doubles we played all tournament, and we had some more strong highlights in singles in this one.  Talyansky was out due to a leg injury, and McGuire played amazing forcing a match tiebreak before losing 11-9.  Siemon stepped in at #6 and lost a match tiebreak as well 10-7.  Beck played a great second set against Lee, but lost 7-5.

This upcoming weekend is also a jam packed weekend.  The men participate in their WIAC Final 4 tournament in Eau Claire.  On Friday they play UW-Oshkosh at 3:30.  Then on Saturday they play UW-La Crosse at 9am and finish with UW-Eau Claire at 1pm.  On Sunday the women travel to Kenosha to face host Carthage College at 9am and then Carroll University at around noon.

GO WARHAWKS!!