The UNC Wilmington men’s tennis team is in full swing this season, as the Seahawks brought in six wins in a row through the end of February.

Their run came to an end when the team faced Elon University last Saturday.

“Elon has a pretty solid roster, so we’ll expect a tough match against them.” said senior Andres Torres at the campus tennis courts prior to the match.

The players are confident in this season regardless of the wins and losses.

“I don’t really look at it as just wins and losses, we just mainly focus on getting better, said the head tennis coach,” Matt Dubois.

There are a number of factors that contribute to the team’s positive outlook and victories this season.

“Our coach plays a big part in helping the team,” said Torres.

“A blank canvas,” is the term Dubois used to describe his first year at UNCW back in 2007.

“There weren’t coaches that stayed for too long,” he said. His many years of experience provide an overall awareness and a good read of what to expect from other teams and that of his own.

One member of the team, Michael Copeland, a sophomore from a batch of new players from January of last year, has also contributed a great deal this season.

“Michael is a good player. He’s got a really good forehand and backhand,” said Torres. Copeland had a long stretch of matches in which he was undefeated this season.

“For such a young group, they are doing really good,” said Dubois.

Simple routines before a game go a long way. Within 48 hours of a game, the Seahawks tend to use the “less is more” motto. In other words, they begin to slow down their training pace so they don’t over prepare or strain themselves too much.

This helps them prepare themselves both physically and mentally. Each player makes sure to eat a good breakfast the morning of every game. For good luck, the team attaches chain links to the fence of the court during home games.

Cheering also helps boost morale. Dubois encourages people to go to their games. Going to games is an experience of its own.

“I’ve had people come up to me and say, ‘Wow, I didn’t know it was like that,’” he said.