The Nebraska men’s tennis team will begin its fall season in Tulsa, Okla., this weekend from Oct. 1 – Oct. 4 at the ITA All-American Championships. The University of Tulsa will host the week-long tournament with four Huskers set to compete. All four will enter play as prequalified singles.
Senior Shunya Maruyama looks to lead the Huskers in their first fall tournament of the 2022-23 season. Maruyama posted a 9-10 singles record last spring primarily playing out of the No. 1 and No. 3 spots while winning 16 matches in total. The Nagano, Japan, native also competed on the doubles court with Dario Huber, going 8-5 in the No. 2 spot. He added three conference victories in singles play last season and now has 68 career wins over his three-year venture with the Huskers.
Junior Nic Wiedenhorn will also enter the tournament coming off an impressive season with the Huskers in 2022. Last fall, he posted a 5-3 singles record including a pair of wins in the Oklahoma State and Rancher Invites. Wiedenhorn was a big part of Nebraska’s doubles rotation, teaming with Victor Moreno Lozano en route to a 16-16 doubles record. Partnering with Lozano at the Pacific Coast Doubles Tournament, the duo advanced to the semifinals after five-straight victories to open the tournament. The two won four of their last five doubles matches as Wiedenhorn looks to factor into the doubles picture once again.
Sophomore Roni Hietaranta had a breakout freshman campaign for Nebraska last season, notching 22 total wins which ranked as the second-most wins by a freshman in school history. His 22 wins were also the 19th most by a Husker all-time in a season. The Lappeenranta, Finland native went 14-6 in the spring, including a 5-3 conference record. He competed primarily in the No. 4 spot, going 8-3 along with three wins apiece in the last two spots. Hietaranta ended the 2022 season on a four-match winning streak and had victories in seven of his last 10 matches.
Sophomore Calvin Mueller is the final Husker to travel the Tulsa this weekend, gathering 10 total wins on the season last year. He was named Big Ten Athlete of the Week on April 12, securing a pair of wins against ranked opponents in conference play. Mueller began the year scorching hot, embarking on a five-match winning streak across the Big Ten Singles Championships and the opening match against Creighton.
In 2022-23 the Nebraska men’s tennis team went 9-15, finishing the 2022 season on a three-match winning streak in conference. The final victory over Penn State marked Nebraska’s first three-match Big Ten winning streak since accomplishing the feat in its first season as a conference member in 2011-12. The Huskers also secured their first five-win Big Ten season since joining the conference and just their third five-win season in program history. The last time Nebraska won five conference matches in a season came in 1989, when the Huskers finished second in the Big Eight with a 5-1 record. The 1989 team featured NCAA runner-up Steven Jung. The 4-1 victory over the Nittany Lions also locked up Nebraska’s first winning season in conference play since 1993, when NU was a member of the Big Eight.
Stay up to date with the action by following the Nebraska men’s tennis Twitter account @huskermtennis.
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