Sports: Women's Tennis

UW tennis heads to East Lansing

Starting today, the University of Wisconsin women’s tennis team will travel to East Lansing, Mich., to compete in the ITA Midwest Regional Championship. This tournament will feature some of the region’s best players, all of whom will be vying for a chance to go to the ITA National Championship. Players will be able to participate in the singles or the doubles competition, with several Badgers participating in both.

UW sophomore Alaina Trgovich will be one of the Badgers competing in both singles and doubles this weekend.

“I like playing singles, but I enjoy playing doubles as well,” Trgovich said. “I think it’s more fun.”

Her teammate, freshman Angela Chupa, expects Trgovich to continue her success this weekend. Chupa and Trgovich also expect big things out of Liz Carpenter.

“Liz is a senior; she has experience and heart, and she wants her last year to be her best,” Trgovich said.

Chupa also hopes to continue her recent success this weekend. After winning her flight in Evanston last week, she now sets her sights on succeeding in the singles tournament in East Lansing. She will have a tougher road than most, however, as she will be playing in the single elimination qualifier to earn her spot in the final field.

Trgovich and Chupa have been working along with their teammates to improve their conditioning in preparation for the tournament — as well as the rest of the season.

Individually, the players have all been working to eliminate weaknesses in their game. Chupa has put emphasis on “staying aggressive, good shot selection and eliminating mental errors.”

Trgovich, on the other hand, has been more focused on her forehand and has been working on her doubles game as well.

After putting in hard work off the court, the Badgers believe they belong among the best.

“If we can stay focused, we can compete with anyone,” Trgovich said. “There’s not a huge difference between the best player and the worst player out there. It just comes down to how bad you want it.”

Wisconsin also hopes to use the ITA Regional to gain some momentum moving into the team play portion of the schedule.

“Overall, it’s experience that matters,” Trgovich said. “Matches are the key to improvement … even for the seniors.”

Chupa echoed the belief of her teammate.

“You’re put in different situations, and you learn how to react to them,” she said.

Though the Badgers want to win now, they also know that gathering experience is an integral part on the path to victory.

Trgovich and the rest of the Badgers are eager to go head-to-head against some of the region’s best competition as they prepare for the spring season.

“[I’m] excited to see what we’ve got,” Trgovich said.