The South Carolina men's tennis team will be competing away from Columbia for the next three weekends as it travels to take on four ranked teams in a row.
Its first test will be the toughest of the bunch, as the Gamecocks will take a trip to Atlanta on Saturday to face the country's No. 22 squad in Georgia Tech.
The Gamecocks will be riding high as they make their way out of the state for the first time in this regular season, having earned a 5-0 record thus far. Not only have they not lost a match, they have swept four of them, dropping only a single team point so far this year.
Even with the success, the team knows its facing a tough matchup.
"[Our players] have a ton of respect for Georgia Tech," said coach Josh Goffi. "They're very well coached and it's definitely the toughest test that we have at this point, so I think everybody's pretty excited, but at the same time nervous, which is exactly what a coach wants to see going into a big match."
The Gamecocks will have the fortune of encountering a struggling ACC squad.
The Yellow Jackets have lost three straight matches coming into this weekend, all to currently ranked teams, and have amassed a regular season record of 1-3 to this point. As a result, the team has dropped from its initial spot at No. 19 to its current position at No. 22 in the national rankings.
However, Georgia Tech's recent struggles are of no concern to Goffi's players.
"One thing I really tell the guys is not to look at anybody else's results," Goffi said. "That's the problem with the internet. It's so easy for guys to get on there and they can psych themselves out. We just try to pay attention to ourselves. We're focusing on our games and what we do best and what we need to bring to the court."
Not only will the setting change, but the pace of play will be different as well. South Carolina's five matches this season have come in a span of just nine days, having hosted and participated in two doubleheaders in the last two weekends.
Things may not feel much different for them now, even with a mere four matches in 15 days.
"The level of intensity and the level of energy it takes to win doubleheader matches against mid-major teams is equivalent to what we're going to need to put into a four hour match against a top 20 team," Goffi said, "so it's not any different. I think we're ready to go. I think our guys are mentally sound, so we're looking forward to this weekend."
After a strong showing to begin their season, the Gamecocks earned some recognition and entered the national rankings for the first time this year. But
it's not a position that satisfies the players or the coaches.
"We couldn't care less that we're No. 69," Goffi said. "Sixty-nine is not where we want to be. We're not taking pride in that by any stretch. We're looking for much bigger and better things."
Something will have to give on Saturday as South Carolina looks to maintain its dominance and continue to climb in the rankings at the expense of a Georgia Tech team who will do its best to put an end to their present slide.
