By MTN Sports Reporter: Dixon Riggins
The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders men’s tennis team played in their final ITA Tournament of the fall season with senior Leo Raquin capturing the Ohio Valley region championship back on Oct. 16.
His championship-clinching victory came against the University of Memphis’ Pau Fanlo. After suffering from a 4-6 defeat in the first set, he rallied back with wins in the next two by scores of 6-4 and 6-0.
“This is like the fall national championships in San Diego,” head coach Jimmy Borendame said on the significance of Raquin’s victory. He will compete in the ITA Fall National Championships in San Diego from Nov. 1-Nov. 5.
As for the rest of the Blue Raider squad, they will be traveling to Nashville this weekend to participate in the Vanderbilt Hidden Duals tournament. They will be competing against the hosting Commodores, as well as Illinois, Memphis, and Georgia Tech.
“All those ones that I mentioned: Illinois, Georgia Tech, and Memphis,” coach Borendame confirmed the slate of schools that MTSU will compete against.
“Think about it like a preseason game, they don’t count against your win/loss record as a team, but they count as individuals.” Coach Borendame said when asked to explain the structure of a Hidden Dual tournament. “It’s a team match without team scores.”
The Blue Raiders will be in Nashville competing in the Vanderbilt Hidden Duals tournament from this Friday Oct. 27 until Sunday Oct. 29. These serve as the final team matches and Raquin’s run in the National Championships will wrap up the fall season before the Blue Raiders look to repeat last year’s success next spring.