Tulane Men’s Tennis Coach Mark Booras Previews 2021-22 Season
Oct 1, 2021 | Men's Tennis
NEW ORLEANS — As the Tulane University men's tennis team gets set to embark on its 2021-22 campaign, TulaneGreenWave.com sat down with head coach Mark Booras to get his thoughts on the upcoming season.
On the 2021 team's potential and energy
"We are very excited about this team. It's an extremely young team, we have zero seniors. We lost our top three players from last year and returned our numbers four, five and six. We've got three new players and a few other guys who are back as well. We have a very young team and the thing that we love is we've got a lot of great new energy and excitement. We have guys that really want to go and do something special. So we are excited about this year and we are excited about the future and seeing where we can go in the next four years, because we basically have these guys for another three to four years. These guys' practices, the energy and the focus has been great. It's just what we've been looking for at Tulane University. We always say we want to bring in special kids who are pioneers and who want to do something unique, and this is a great opportunity for them to do that."
On the post-evacuation season start
"We missed a couple events in the last month because of the evacuation, but we are really grateful to be back in school this week. We are getting back to a little sense of normalcy here. We had a few days of practice that went really well and now we are going right into the fire playing against some great teams. The biggest thing for us is getting our feet wet and competing again, and keeping a great perspective about where we are. The big goal for this next month is saying hey, we thought we might have been here with practice and training and tournaments, but life takes you in different routes and you have to make the best of what you can. We are excited to be competing again and hopefully we get some great experience this weekend."
On searching for a team leader
"We do have ideas for people that might lead, but it's almost a brand new squad just because of all the senior leadership we graduated last year. Now we are going to use this next month or so to see how things pan out with the guys."
On continuing a tradition of team excellence
"We go to that tournament (NCAA tournament) and we're pumped, but we want to be in the Sweet 16 or the Final Four. We look at Tulane as a program that can be nationally relevant every year. These guys want to do something bigger and better and that comes from Chris (Simpson) and I saying we believe we have the ability to get the right kinds of kids in here. Student athletes who are going to be successful academically, successful athletically, and have great character and lead and be great ambassadors of the program. When we bring those kinds of guys in who want to be pioneers, we are going to have even more opportunities to take next steps and take the program to a next level."
On the season's challenging play schedule
"It's going to be great. We have another tough schedule with 15 or more teams who are in the top 40 of the country which is fantastic. We've got 11 home matches in the spring, four weekends in a row actually, which is fantastic. The guys are going to get that national type of exposure this year. That's the most important thing: If we are getting the training and doing everything we can on our end, and we've got the experience to play against the top teams. These guys are getting that opportunity to play against top teams. I think this weekend we are going to get to see 'hey, where do we stand, what do we need to work on,' as we play against a few top teams."
On the new freshman class
"They are loving it. They are pumped, they are excited. They have had a very different month and a half from most freshman programs, having evacuated to Birmingham, getting sent home, and now coming back. They're getting right in. The interesting thing is the resilience that these kids show, it is amazing. They came back and they are just pumped to be here. They are pumped to be on campus, and to be at practice even though it's raining and we're going indoors and can only practice for a short period of time. These guys are just so excited to be doing it. That's what we love about this class we just brought in. We have three guys, Alex, Luke and Luka, who are just so excited to be here and be a part of what we have done in the past, but also take it to new levels. That type of energy and focus gives Chris and I a lot of encouragement."
On the athletic department's evacuation
"What Tulane did and Tulane athletics did for all these kids was amazing. They all had a place to go. They were all safe, they were all taken care of. On top of it, they were able to play their sport and that's a pretty amazing home away from home thing. Thanks so much to the people in Birmingham who opened their arms to us. Especially for us, after Birmingham we had three families open their arms to our kids to go home with them for four weeks. We had so many different opportunities of people reaching out to try and help. That started with Tulane Athletics having a great plan and having a great investment in understanding the need to take care of our kids."
On the team's excitement returning to New Orleans
"Picking them up from the airport they were all smiles even though they had an early flight and no sleep. But they're like 'hey, we're back,' and all want to jump on the tennis court as fast as they can. It's nice to see that they can still be excited and have enjoyment even after having five weeks of a very different experience."
FOLLOW THE GREEN WAVE
Follow Tulane men's tennis on Twitter and Facebook (@GreenWaveMTenn), as well as Instagram (@TulaneMTennis) for behind-the-scenes coverage of the program.
WE ARE NOLA BUILT
Tulane University is located in the city of New Orleans. It is a city built on tradition and resiliency. The lessons Green Wave student-athletes have learned through their connection with this university and city have BUILT doctors, lawyers, business leaders, conference champions, all-conference players, All-Americans, professional athletes and NCAA tournament teams. The city of New Orleans has shaped us into who we are today. We are One City. We are Tulane. We are NOLA BUILT. Check out our story at NolaBuilt.com.
On the 2021 team's potential and energy
"We are very excited about this team. It's an extremely young team, we have zero seniors. We lost our top three players from last year and returned our numbers four, five and six. We've got three new players and a few other guys who are back as well. We have a very young team and the thing that we love is we've got a lot of great new energy and excitement. We have guys that really want to go and do something special. So we are excited about this year and we are excited about the future and seeing where we can go in the next four years, because we basically have these guys for another three to four years. These guys' practices, the energy and the focus has been great. It's just what we've been looking for at Tulane University. We always say we want to bring in special kids who are pioneers and who want to do something unique, and this is a great opportunity for them to do that."
On the post-evacuation season start
"We missed a couple events in the last month because of the evacuation, but we are really grateful to be back in school this week. We are getting back to a little sense of normalcy here. We had a few days of practice that went really well and now we are going right into the fire playing against some great teams. The biggest thing for us is getting our feet wet and competing again, and keeping a great perspective about where we are. The big goal for this next month is saying hey, we thought we might have been here with practice and training and tournaments, but life takes you in different routes and you have to make the best of what you can. We are excited to be competing again and hopefully we get some great experience this weekend."
On searching for a team leader
"We do have ideas for people that might lead, but it's almost a brand new squad just because of all the senior leadership we graduated last year. Now we are going to use this next month or so to see how things pan out with the guys."
On continuing a tradition of team excellence
"We go to that tournament (NCAA tournament) and we're pumped, but we want to be in the Sweet 16 or the Final Four. We look at Tulane as a program that can be nationally relevant every year. These guys want to do something bigger and better and that comes from Chris (Simpson) and I saying we believe we have the ability to get the right kinds of kids in here. Student athletes who are going to be successful academically, successful athletically, and have great character and lead and be great ambassadors of the program. When we bring those kinds of guys in who want to be pioneers, we are going to have even more opportunities to take next steps and take the program to a next level."
On the season's challenging play schedule
"It's going to be great. We have another tough schedule with 15 or more teams who are in the top 40 of the country which is fantastic. We've got 11 home matches in the spring, four weekends in a row actually, which is fantastic. The guys are going to get that national type of exposure this year. That's the most important thing: If we are getting the training and doing everything we can on our end, and we've got the experience to play against the top teams. These guys are getting that opportunity to play against top teams. I think this weekend we are going to get to see 'hey, where do we stand, what do we need to work on,' as we play against a few top teams."
On the new freshman class
"They are loving it. They are pumped, they are excited. They have had a very different month and a half from most freshman programs, having evacuated to Birmingham, getting sent home, and now coming back. They're getting right in. The interesting thing is the resilience that these kids show, it is amazing. They came back and they are just pumped to be here. They are pumped to be on campus, and to be at practice even though it's raining and we're going indoors and can only practice for a short period of time. These guys are just so excited to be doing it. That's what we love about this class we just brought in. We have three guys, Alex, Luke and Luka, who are just so excited to be here and be a part of what we have done in the past, but also take it to new levels. That type of energy and focus gives Chris and I a lot of encouragement."
On the athletic department's evacuation
"What Tulane did and Tulane athletics did for all these kids was amazing. They all had a place to go. They were all safe, they were all taken care of. On top of it, they were able to play their sport and that's a pretty amazing home away from home thing. Thanks so much to the people in Birmingham who opened their arms to us. Especially for us, after Birmingham we had three families open their arms to our kids to go home with them for four weeks. We had so many different opportunities of people reaching out to try and help. That started with Tulane Athletics having a great plan and having a great investment in understanding the need to take care of our kids."
On the team's excitement returning to New Orleans
"Picking them up from the airport they were all smiles even though they had an early flight and no sleep. But they're like 'hey, we're back,' and all want to jump on the tennis court as fast as they can. It's nice to see that they can still be excited and have enjoyment even after having five weeks of a very different experience."
FOLLOW THE GREEN WAVE
Follow Tulane men's tennis on Twitter and Facebook (@GreenWaveMTenn), as well as Instagram (@TulaneMTennis) for behind-the-scenes coverage of the program.
WE ARE NOLA BUILT
Tulane University is located in the city of New Orleans. It is a city built on tradition and resiliency. The lessons Green Wave student-athletes have learned through their connection with this university and city have BUILT doctors, lawyers, business leaders, conference champions, all-conference players, All-Americans, professional athletes and NCAA tournament teams. The city of New Orleans has shaped us into who we are today. We are One City. We are Tulane. We are NOLA BUILT. Check out our story at NolaBuilt.com.
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