At the beginning of the season, the Ball State men's tennis team had everything going its way.
The Cardinals were coming off of their seventh trip to the NCAA Tournament last season and they were picked by the Mid-American Conference front office to be the favorites in the conference this season.
The season, however, hasn't exactly gone Ball State's way. The team has dealt with injuries to freshman Ray Leonard, junior Alex Brym and freshman Patrick Elliott; they've been without the services of seniors Andres Monroy and Cliff Morrison due to hip and knee injuries and one player transferred to Georgia Southern for personal reasons.
With two conference losses to add on top of its roller coaster season, Ball State is looking to pick up a win today against Buffalo and regain some confidence and momentum going into the MAC Tournament. The only problem is Buffalo has a 4-0 record in MAC play this season and it has won its past two matchups against Ball State.
"Buffalo has clinched a share of the [MAC] regular season championship," head coach Bill Richards said. "They've set the standard this season, and we're approaching it from a standpoint we want to prove to everyone we're as good as anyone else in the league."
Leonard is one player that may be a huge factor in Ball State's matchup with Buffalo. Despite being very limited in practice this week with an abdominal pull, he has a team-leading 17-8 singles record and a 3-1 record in conference play.
"[Leonard's] got a nice game, a good head on his shoulders and he competes well," Richards said. "It's not any one thing. It's a combination of tennis skills, being tough mentally and strong emotionally."
Leonard said the key to victory for Ball State's matchup with Buffalo today is toughness.
"It's finding a way to win four points and get out with a victory," he said. "I know everybody's ready to get back to our winning ways."
Ball State's matchup with Buffalo will begin at 1 p.m. at the Cardinal Creek Tennis Center. If inclement weather occurs, the match will be moved indoors to the Northwest YMCA Tennis Center.
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