Considering that the Cal men’s tennis team started its season plagued with injuries, the squad’s No. 17 overall finish is pretty impressive.
So it’s no surprise that the squad made The Daily Californian’s list of the top 10 Cal sports teams ranked at No. 8.
I mean, they were good — but not great. In terms of rankings, the Bears have been hovering around the ‘–teens’ for the past few years. Last season, Cal completed the year at No. 13 and at No. 14 the year before that. And both times, the Bears concluded their run at the NCAAs in the round of 16.
They stagnated again this year with a similar Sweet 16 loss for the third year in a row. Could the Bears have performed better without all those initial injuries? Maybe.
Probably.
But that being said, we will never know if the Bears’ early loss of their co-captain senior Riki McLachlan to injury hindered them from a top-10 finish — a goal that seemed realistic enough at the beginning of the season.
Although lacking in individual star power, the Cal squad found strength in its depth, starting its regular dual-match season with three straight wins.
However, the Bears were swept by No. 5 USC in their fourth dual match of the year, after McLachlan suffered a knee injury during doubles play.
One week later, Cal lost more players to temporary injuries, which basically meant more time needed in the training room recovering and less time on the court.
But despite the several health issues, the team managed to produce a commendable season — demonstrating potential as a top-10 team with victories over some of the nation’s top squads.
Cal took down then-No. 11 Florida with a 4-1 win in February, and the Bears later topped No. 7 Duke in a monumental 4-3 upset for their first defeat over a top-10 team in March.
The Bears also conquered their Bay Area rival Stanford twice this season — the first time Cal has swept the Cardinal in six years.
Pretty good for a team that was struggling to battle back injury in the middle of the season.
And with the squad not changing too much next year, the Bears look like they will have at least one more shot at their top-10 goal.
They will be losing graduating seniors McLachlan and Christoffer Konigsfeldt — a constant force on the No. 2 court in singles and on the top court in doubles.
Although Konigsfeldt’s absence will create a hole near the top of the lineup, rising senior Campbell Johnson will most likely take his place in the No. 2 spot, and younger players Gregory Bayane and Mads Engsted will step up to take over higher courts.
The Bears will also be gaining two new freshmen recruits in Filip Bergevi and Andre Goransson — both top juniors who hail from Sweden.
With the retention of a well-rounded team from last year and the addition of two more talented players, Cal looks like it can create another impressive season in 2014, provided it is not bitten by the injury bug once again.
Maybe next year, the Bears will finally break that elite top-10 barrier.
Janice Chua covers men’s tennis. Contact her at [email protected].