COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KRHD) — Texas A&M Men's Tennis has completed its regular season and the preparation to host the SEC Conference Tournament at Mitchell Tennis Center. The Aggies sit as the five seed and are set to play the winner of Alabama and Vanderbilt Thursday.
It will be the first time the SEC Tournament has come to College Station since 2015, the last time Texas A&M won the tournament. Head Coach Steve Denton thinks it gives his team an edge.
"The last time it was played here we won it, and it certainly doesn't hurt to have the the 12th man, supporting you and being in a familiar, familiar setting, and so, I think our guys are, are, are gonna, you know, do their best to try to take advantage of that," Denton Said. "We've been awfully good at home for a long time and, you know, there's been some teams that have come in here and beaten us just because they were better than we were but, overall, if we get in close matches, especially here, I like our chances."
One key to the Aggies having a successful weekend will be the play of sophomore Theo Papamalamis. The Frenchman has impressed Coach Denton with his growth from last season.
"His preparation before he got here and since he's gotten here he's just gotten better and better and I know he's thrilled about the opportunity. He's beaten some really good guys this year and and I think he's playing at a really high level right now so I know that he's excited," Denton said.
Papamalamis learned a lot as a true freshman going against the SEC's best. He said his mentally changed after seeing how others in the confrence prepared.
"Like my freshman year, I played a couple of senior, especially against Texas and Tennessee. They made me realize I had to change something, and I actually took an example on them. So yeah, then I tried to, I tried to improve those things. Then I got injured in the fall and this injury made me realize as well that I had to change things and I think it really helped me," Papamalamis said.
The Aggies will need to win three matches to make the finals on Sunday. Their second round match Thursday is set to begin at 7PM.
