Senior Moritz Baumann and junior Marek Michalicka formed a formidable duo throughout the fall, and continued they their strong play this past weekend in New Haven, Conn., at the ITA Indoor Championships.
The two traveled to ITAs as the No. 4 seed in doubles, where the Wisconsin duo was upset by Robert Farah and Steve Johnson from Southern Cal in the second round. After being moved to the consolation bracket, Baumann and Michalicka showed their toughness by coming back and advancing to the final round before being defeated by Yale’s Marek Czerwinski and Dennis Nevolo. After a being defeated so early, the two came back and showed the country just how fearsome they could be in the spring season.
“We [feel we] have two guys at the top who can beat anyone in the country,” said Michalicka.
Head coach Greg Van Emburgh feels they were unlucky and should have remained in the winners bracket longer, given their high seeding, but a couple of unlucky breaks went against them in their second-round loss.
Regardless of their early exit from the winners bracket, the trip turned out to be a phenomenal outing for the two seniors. This was the first time in school history the tennis team has sent two players to the ITAs. Even more impressive, the two were the first two players in school history to win a match and advance to the second round. Despite the odds against them, Van Emburgh never doubted his two players.
“I think it’s a huge accomplishment for our program [and] for them as players,” Van Emburgh said. “[However] I wasn’t surprised, I know their potential and their [talent] level, but it’s quite an accomplishment for them to make it that far.”
Even with newfound success, coaches and players alike claim their preparation and practice was relatively unchanged from a season ago, only that this time they were just able to put everything together.
“I don’t think there was anything different, we did the same things last year, but we just did it better,” Michalicka said. “I felt better on the court, [and] I know everything was better than last year when we just didn’t have a good season.”
The success caps off a great fall season for the team, setting up things quite nicely for Van Emburgh and the rest of the coaching staff in the spring.
“We’re really excited with our fall, it’s probably one of the best falls I’ve had here and this is my fifth year [here],” Van Emburgh said.
That being said, it isn’t always easy to take a two-month break in the middle of your season and expect to come back and pick it up where you left off, a concern Van Emburgh noted following the tournament.
“It’s always a tough time, end of the fall season,” Van Emburgh said. “The only motivation is the spring season, trying to work on some things to make sure to we continue to improve.”
Fortunately for the Badgers, reinforcements are on the way. A prize recruit from Colombia, Ricardo Martin, will enroll in January and compete for the team in the spring season.
International recruiting has been something Van Emburgh has focused on throughout his tenure in Madison. Tennis is truly an international sport and is something to capitalize on when it comes to fielding the best possible team. He believes his team is no exception and that coaches throughout collegiate tennis recruit from Europe, South America and other hot spots for tennis around the world.
“I think it’s that way across the board, you see the international players,” Van Emburgh said. “It’s such a broad based sport, to be competitive you have to feed into the international player.”
Michalicka relished an opportunity to come to America and play tennis while also receiving a top-notch education.
“I just wanted to experience something new and to study abroad in America while getting a good degree,” Michalicka said. “Back home it’s tough to play tennis and [also] get a degree at the same time.”