TUCSON, Arizona — "We could only dream about the results we’ve had this season," said Wildcat junior Jonas Ziverts.
"It’s been an incredible year so far," said Wildcat junior Alejandro Reguant.
"It’s been an awesome ride," said Wildcat head coach Clancy Shields.
With a record of 18-6, Arizona men’s tennis has its most wins in program history. Shields has built a roster with seven international players, including three from Sweden.
"Coach Clancy has a great energy and a great tennis IQ," said Ziverts. "He’s really smart. He knows what he’s talking about."
"Tennis is such a global sport," said Shields. "It’s huge, internationally. Once you get one kid from Sweden, they talk to their buddies. They tell them how great Arizona is. They want to come."
The influx of talent has made a difference. Prior to this year, the Wildcats were a combined 3 and 175 in their last 178 matches against UCLA and USC.
"They didn’t even warm up to play us," said Reguant.
Not only did the Wildcats beat both southern California schools this year, they also beat Arizona State for the first time in more than a decade.
"Three and a half years later, it meant the world for me to beat them," said Reguant, referring to his freshman season.
Among the program's fans is new Wildcat football coach Jedd Fisch, who showed up for a match this spring.
The Wildcats are headed to the PAC-12 championships in San Diego this weekend. They’ll be a No. 2 seed behind Stanford. It’s the highest ever seed in program history.
