Courtney Van Haaften | Sports Co-Editor

The Buena Vista University (BVU) men’s tennis team held a home indoor tennis meet on Saturday, March 1, in the Lamberti Recreation Center. The Beavers came up with the win against conference opponent Loras College, 8-1, before falling to Cornell College, 5-4.

“It was awesome winning at home this weekend. We were really excited to beat Loras because that’s one step closer to the conference tournament,” junior tennis player Kyle Weeden said. “Everyone played well, and it was a great team win. There were quite a few fans there throughout the day so it was nice to have that support.”

In the match against the Duhawks, all three doubles teams for BVU picked up a victory. Four out of the five singles competitors came out on top as well.

The tennis team contributes its recent successes to the new head tennis coach, Rick Halverson, and their overall team chemistry. Halverson pushes them hard in practice and has heightened expectations for the program.

“This year’s team has great chemistry, and it’s a big part of our success. We push each other in practices and keep everyone motivated,” senior team member John Bieber said.

The Beavers are looking to place higher in the conference than they did last year when they placed fourth overall.

“This team has the capability to be a leader in the conference. We just need to stay focused and consistent in every match and the results will follow,” Bieber said.

“In order to improve to be successful in the conference, we need to keep practicing hard and being mentally prepared for every match,” Weeden said. “There are some tough teams in our conference, but we feel like we can go out and compete with any of them. We have a good shot at finishing towards the top of the conference this year, so we are excited to see where the rest of the season takes us.”

The tennis team will compete in Storm Lake again on Saturday, March 15. They will take on Coe College at 9 a.m. and Grand View University at 5 p.m.