The U of M Tennis Club (UMTC) captain Hlib Bohach said he felt confident going into his men’s singles match at this year’s Prairie Regional Championship. Bohach went on to defeat Jackson Baerg in straight sets, winning 6-3, 6-3.

“I was pumped up, for sure, but I’m never sure that I’m gonna win,” said Bohach. “I was really excited to play him. I was really confident, but [I try] to never tell myself that I’m sure [I’ll win], even if the opponent is a little weaker, which wasn’t the case [with Baerg].”

Bohach described his mindset throughout the game. “After the loss in the first day, I figured I need to be a little more patient with my game […] Using my power and just striking in the right moment, it helped a lot. I would say my return game was pretty strong, so it helped to break him twice in the first and second set.”

Bohach said some of his main strategies in this game were serve plus one and serve-and-volley. He added, “I tried to rely a lot on my unpredictable style and […] big forehand.”

Commenting on the historic feat by the UMTC women’s team, its first-ever series of wins in both singles and doubles, Bohach noted, “I think they did really well. It was much harder against [the University of Alberta] for them because those girls they are national champions […] their level was impressive.” He continued, “When I saw them on [the] court, when I saw the […] fire in their eyes and how they were […] listening to our strategies that we gave them and how they were acting on [the] court, they looked really confident.”

Bohach commented on the progress UMTC has been making and shared his views on its ongoing development. “The team kind of starts shaping itself. We get some players that really want to practice and I know […] every single guy, and the women’s team too, they put in a lot of work outside on themselves […] to get the best result possible.” He added, “I think the men’s and the women’s team are getting better and better, I would say much better than last year.”

Bohach said that with support from the U of M, UMTC will continue working to develop its programs and meet its goals. “I think [UMTC] has room for development, and I think [with] the help of [the U of M] we can do it.”