By Evan Millstein, SDA Student Assistant
Scouting Arizona State in the preseason was unlike any other program in the country. The roster featured nine international recruits in nine countries. On top of that, the program had not served a ball in almost a decade.
The report after three competitive top-25 matchups? A group of individuals, according to head coach Matt Hill.
"It was weird sitting in a room all of a sudden you're looking around at eight different guys thinking these are my teammates for the next three to four years," said Thomas Wright. "It's quite funny, you bond straight away."
The bond naturally took some time to develop but with the help of geography and cultural similarity, the process was expedited.
Each from their own respective country, the majority of the roster derives from Europe. From the start, they all had the commonality of eating good food and following soccer like many Europeans.
"Having so much variety has helped us a lot in different areas in helping balance out certain things and striving towards being not just better players but better people," said Hill. "It's been a huge asset for us."
A small language barrier existed in the melting pot of 10+ dialects. With time, it dissipated.
The common goal of the roster is to play tennis at the professional level. College tennis has turned into a stepping stone to achieve that aspiration.
To excel and achieve the dream of playing at the next level, a team needs to play as one unit and come together on and off the court.
"You don't have half the guys here just for college tennis to have some fun with it and have another group of guys that are taking it seriously and doing all the extras," said Hill. "It splits the group up. We don't have that and it's been really helpful."
The season trucked along and with that came the collegiate experience that was once vacant just two months earlier. No longer individuals, chemistry developed and so did a team.
Being present around a team complied with student-athletes from around the globe provided a constant flow of new ideas. Concepts that they have never been heard before was now being bounced around the locker room.
"Everyone has their own personality," said captain Michael Geerts.
Geerts saw the personalities bloom as the team got more positive on the court. In the early stages of the season, frustration as a collective group surfaced that isn't experienced as an individual competitor.
They began to look at the rest of the season and pushed to be more positive when things weren't going their way.
Grinding out the early season jitters, the Sun Devils got comfortable.
The men's tennis team rattled off an eight-match win streak and reached as high as No. 13 in the ITA Division I National Team Rankings.
"For me mainly it's being at home almost," said Wright. "You travel the world as a junior, for me especially a lot in Europe. Seeing these boys kind of reminds me of home."
Scouting Arizona State in the preseason was unlike any other program in the country. The roster featured nine international recruits in nine countries. On top of that, the program had not served a ball in almost a decade.
The report after three competitive top-25 matchups? A group of individuals, according to head coach Matt Hill.
"It was weird sitting in a room all of a sudden you're looking around at eight different guys thinking these are my teammates for the next three to four years," said Thomas Wright. "It's quite funny, you bond straight away."
The bond naturally took some time to develop but with the help of geography and cultural similarity, the process was expedited.
Each from their own respective country, the majority of the roster derives from Europe. From the start, they all had the commonality of eating good food and following soccer like many Europeans.
"Having so much variety has helped us a lot in different areas in helping balance out certain things and striving towards being not just better players but better people," said Hill. "It's been a huge asset for us."
A small language barrier existed in the melting pot of 10+ dialects. With time, it dissipated.
The common goal of the roster is to play tennis at the professional level. College tennis has turned into a stepping stone to achieve that aspiration.
To excel and achieve the dream of playing at the next level, a team needs to play as one unit and come together on and off the court.
"You don't have half the guys here just for college tennis to have some fun with it and have another group of guys that are taking it seriously and doing all the extras," said Hill. "It splits the group up. We don't have that and it's been really helpful."
The season trucked along and with that came the collegiate experience that was once vacant just two months earlier. No longer individuals, chemistry developed and so did a team.
Being present around a team complied with student-athletes from around the globe provided a constant flow of new ideas. Concepts that they have never been heard before was now being bounced around the locker room.
"Everyone has their own personality," said captain Michael Geerts.
Geerts saw the personalities bloom as the team got more positive on the court. In the early stages of the season, frustration as a collective group surfaced that isn't experienced as an individual competitor.
They began to look at the rest of the season and pushed to be more positive when things weren't going their way.
Grinding out the early season jitters, the Sun Devils got comfortable.
The men's tennis team rattled off an eight-match win streak and reached as high as No. 13 in the ITA Division I National Team Rankings.
"For me mainly it's being at home almost," said Wright. "You travel the world as a junior, for me especially a lot in Europe. Seeing these boys kind of reminds me of home."