Goffi looks for his team to compete
Nearly two weeks after its last match, the USC men's tennis team is ready to begin SEC play with a match against Arkansas today and a contest against LSU on Sunday.
Arkansas has lost four consecutive matches, most recently a 4-2 defeat at the hands of UNLV on Sunday. The Razorbacks beat the Gamecocks by a score of 4-2 last year. Although USC secured the doubles point, four of five singles players suffered a loss, and the sixth match was incomplete. Ivan Machado provided Carolina's second point with a 6-4, 6-1 victory at No. 4 singles.
LSU's last match was a 6-1 loss to No. 14 Texas A&M, but the play of the Tigers' No. 1 doubles team was a bright spot in the defeat. Neal Skupski and Sebastian Carlsson, ranked No. 14 in the nation, beat the best duo in the country by a score of 8-6.
The Gamecocks lost to the Tigers last year, 5-2, despite winning all three doubles matches. They won only one SEC match in spring 2010.
"Anything can happen in conference matches," coach Josh Goffi said. "That's the good thing. It's also the bad thing. At this point in our season, it's definitely a good thing. I think the guys are going into this weekend with a very positive outlook and an eager and anxious outlook.
"The goal right now is not to get a win. The goal right now is to compete hard. If we compete hard and enjoy the process of competing, a win is definitely probable at that point."
The Gamecocks have taken advantage of their break to improve by competing against one another.
"We've actually been playing intersquad matches," Goffi said. "Overall I think it was a necessary break. We've had to transition from indoors to outdoors comfortably, and we've put a lot of work in these past two weeks. We're feeling good going into this weekend."
Freshman Nick Jones, who has been struggling with injuries throughout the season, will be ready to help his team this weekend.
"Nick will be playing in one of our top spots," Goffi said. "He's playing well, and he's played well in practice the past two weeks. He's proven that he deserves a spot at the top of the lineup."
Jones played No. 2 singles in USC's matchup against NC State on Feb. 13, losing 6-1, 6-2. He played No. 1 doubles with Alexander Kostanov and took an 8-3 loss. The freshman did not participate in the Gamecocks' victory against USC Upstate.
Even if USC does not come out of this weekend with any wins, the players hope to take away lessons that will help them in the future.
"The guys are starting to realize that it takes a little more than what they're used to," Goffi said. "They guys are very eager, with all the work they've done and all the time they've put in, to have it come to fruition. They're excited."