The No. 13 South Carolina men’s tennis team (8-0) will host No. 6 Wake Forest (13-1) on Feb. 10 at the Carolina Indoor Tennis Center.
Both teams head into the matchup with winning streaks. South Carolina started its spring season undefeated on a nine-match winning streak. Wake Forest won its last six matches, including three against ranked opponents.
South Carolina players No. 14 junior Daniel Rodrigues and No. 97 sophomore Connor Thomson head into Thursday's match ranked and undefeated in singles play.
The team also features two ranked doubles teams. No. 5 Rodrigues and Thomson have a 7-0 record in doubles and have defeated three ranked doubles tandems this season. Sophomore Toby Samuel and junior Jake Beasley make up another doubles squad ranked No. 53.
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons are the first ranked opponent South Carolina has faced this season. Head coach Josh Goffi said the team is embracing being the underdog in the matchup.
“It’s the first match that these guys are ranked ahead of us. Everybody else has been ranked behind us so far this year, and that obviously brings some different pressure to the table," Goffi said. "I think our guys are looking forward to being a little bit freer and swinging a little bit more against a higher-ranked team.”
Despite those pressures, Goffi said he and the team are preparing for Wake Forest like it would for any other opponent.
“We just treat every match the same,” Goffi said. “We’re bringing our guys to the table, and we’ll deal with the opponents on match day.”
The Gamecocks will have to fight harder to win sets against a higher-ranked team, especially if a player falls behind early. However, Rodrigues said the team is mentally prepared for that situation if it arises.
“It’s all about keep fighting every single point and really never giving up until the end of the match,” Rodrigues said. “Many times the match turns around because two or three guys start coming back from a match, and then the others join and it all goes in the same direction.”
Thomson said maintaining the positive momentum from earlier matches will be the key to the team’s success against Wake Forest.
“Momentum is very crucial, just in sports in general — whenever you get the chance to take on a good team after winning a lot in a row, you feel good,” Thomson said. “It’s important you go out there and recognize that yeah, we might feel good, but you have to go out there and put the work in, and that’s what we’re going to try and do.”
The electric atmosphere at the Carolina Indoor Tennis Center played a large role in providing that momentum so far this season and the team is hoping they can use it to its advantage.
“Our supporters are amazing. Everything they do for our program — coming out and supporting the boys — it creates an atmosphere that I personally love,” Thomson said. “I love the fact that everybody’s so passionate about Gamecock tennis, and it means everything to me.”
No. 13 South Carolina and No. 6 Wake Forest will begin doubles play at 5 p.m. on Feb. 10 at the Carolina Indoor Tennis Center.