TACOMA, Wash. - The Pacific Lutheran University men's tennis team will jump right back into competitive action against rivals University of Puget Sound as they take the court for the first time since March of last year.
The Lutes' 2019-2020 season was cut short, but at the time of the shutdown the Lutes had a winning record of 4-2. They earned wins over Linfield University, University of Puget Sound, Community Colleges of Spokane and Otterbein University. The victory over Puget Sound is something the Lutes will look to replicate this week as they hope to get their 2021 season off to the same start.
Taking over for the Lutes this season will be 1986 alum and former Lutes All-American tennis player
Paul Koessler. Koessler was named head coach of the Lutes on February 1st and has had only a few weeks to get his team ready for their upcoming match.
Being so new to the team, Koessler is taking a measured approached when working with student-athletes and their mechanics.
"We will be looking to enhance any strokes rather than making any wholesale changes. The season will be rapidly upon us and often there is regression before progression when making stroke changes. The off season is the time we will be talking about any fundamental changes if warranted."
The first few weeks for Koessler have been focused on getting to know his team better and their styles of play.
Luckily for the new head coach he will have a roster loaded with upperclassmen who have been a part of Lute athletics for multiple years now. Seniors
Branson Near,
Alex Richter, and
Jake Kim will look to provide the veteran leadership expected of them.
"It has been great to have the upperclassmen and their leadership in our practices. It is a great group of young men and I am proud to be able to come back to try and put the team in positions of being successful on and off the court" said Koessler.
Joining the seniors will be a junior class led by
Michael Campbell. Campbell has played both singles and doubles for the Lutes and has racked up 23 victories in his two seasons so far. The lone freshman on this year's team is
Samuel Kwon who is from University Place, Washington.
The schedule for the 2021 season will look a little different from most years for the Lutes. They will only play conference matches and will play each school once during the season. This Thursday's game against Puget Sound will not count towards the official Northwest Conference standings.
"If we lose, we won't lose the lesson. If we win, we will do it graciously and with an appreciation of the opportunity that's been afforded us to be a part of the PLU tennis and athletic program. With such a truncated schedule of matches, I don't have any real specific performance goals for the team this season. We want to build and foster a culture of success, implement a process of on-court development, and graduate student-athletes who are ready to take on the world when they depart PLU."
The Lutes meet the Loggers on Thursday at the UPS Tennis Pavilion beginning at 5 p.m.
