Spring Break
The Daily OrangeTEN| SU learns from losses over Spring Break
By Josh Friedman
Posted: 3/22/05, 1:05 AM EST Section: Sports
Mac Gifford has a To Do List, but it includes a little more than the usual spring cleaning. After the Syracuse tennis team lost matches against Yale, Loyola Marymount and Fresno State last week, its head coach says his team has a lot to work on.
"I'm losing a lot of sleep trying to come to terms with what everyone needs to work on," Gifford said. "There's a whole list on my agenda. I have nine players and they all have stuff they need to do."
Yale and Loyola both beat the Orange 6-1 and Fresno State won 5-2.
Still, Gifford sees the trip as a learning experience - one that SU will use as a stepping stone for further improvement.
"We are playing teams that have higher ranks and more guns playing for them," Gifford said. "It's not like the NCAA (Tournament), when there is a possibility for upsets. We are playing teams that are clearly more experienced than us and we need that experience so we can be better players."
The scores indicate that Syracuse was handled throughout the trip, but Gifford contends Syracuse was competitive in every match and even should have beaten Yale.
"We had the doubles point in hand (against Yale), and we couldn't put them away," Gifford said. "We (also) had singles sets down and couldn't put them away. It was a constant battle."
Sophomore Katie Bramante and freshmen Victoria Vaynberg, Catherine Zawadzki and Jessica Juricek each won matches during the week and sophomores Ashley Lipton and Carolina Huignard also won a doubles match against Loyola.
Vaynberg defeated 71st-ranked Katharina Winterhalter, 6-1, 7-5, and Juricek beat Margo Naraghi-Grcic for her first collegiate victory against Fresno State.
"We played well at times and I think we had our chances," Gifford said. "If everyone had come and played well on the same day, it would have been great. They are teams that don't make the same mistakes we do. It's not about who is the better athlete, it's who knows the game better."
Collegiate tennis is very strong on the West Coast, which is a major reason for Gifford's optimism.
"I was expecting (us) to learn and go up against top-flight competition," Gifford said. "I'm not happy we lost, but I want them to respond. I wish we had a Spring Break trip early in the season so (we) could use that experience from top competition."
The Orange will have to respond quickly as it plays Big East rivals Connecticut and West Virginia at the end of the week.
"We need to finish points," Gifford said. "Mental toughness is a big part of the game. There were moments when we were in control of the match and let it go. You can't throw points away."
"I'm losing a lot of sleep trying to come to terms with what everyone needs to work on," Gifford said. "There's a whole list on my agenda. I have nine players and they all have stuff they need to do."
Yale and Loyola both beat the Orange 6-1 and Fresno State won 5-2.
Still, Gifford sees the trip as a learning experience - one that SU will use as a stepping stone for further improvement.
"We are playing teams that have higher ranks and more guns playing for them," Gifford said. "It's not like the NCAA (Tournament), when there is a possibility for upsets. We are playing teams that are clearly more experienced than us and we need that experience so we can be better players."
The scores indicate that Syracuse was handled throughout the trip, but Gifford contends Syracuse was competitive in every match and even should have beaten Yale.
"We had the doubles point in hand (against Yale), and we couldn't put them away," Gifford said. "We (also) had singles sets down and couldn't put them away. It was a constant battle."
Sophomore Katie Bramante and freshmen Victoria Vaynberg, Catherine Zawadzki and Jessica Juricek each won matches during the week and sophomores Ashley Lipton and Carolina Huignard also won a doubles match against Loyola.
Vaynberg defeated 71st-ranked Katharina Winterhalter, 6-1, 7-5, and Juricek beat Margo Naraghi-Grcic for her first collegiate victory against Fresno State.
"We played well at times and I think we had our chances," Gifford said. "If everyone had come and played well on the same day, it would have been great. They are teams that don't make the same mistakes we do. It's not about who is the better athlete, it's who knows the game better."
Collegiate tennis is very strong on the West Coast, which is a major reason for Gifford's optimism.
"I was expecting (us) to learn and go up against top-flight competition," Gifford said. "I'm not happy we lost, but I want them to respond. I wish we had a Spring Break trip early in the season so (we) could use that experience from top competition."
The Orange will have to respond quickly as it plays Big East rivals Connecticut and West Virginia at the end of the week.
"We need to finish points," Gifford said. "Mental toughness is a big part of the game. There were moments when we were in control of the match and let it go. You can't throw points away."
