MEN'S TENNIS BLOG FOR MAY 2, 2012
BY JUNIOR IBRAHIM SHAMS
MORE SELECTION SHOW REACTION
The day that we have all been looking forward to has finally arrived. It was selection day. Every single player on the team was curious to find out who will we be competing against in our first NCAA journey. As expected, we are going to face the University of Virginia, who is currently holding the #4 spot in the nation. We are really excited to be facing a top 5 team, as this is our first time. One player in particular who was really excited is Yuri Gricheno as he’ll be facing the #1 player in the nation. Here are Yuri’s thoughts on selection day and the NCAA tournament:
It was great for me to have the support of the school’s staff, other athletes and especially my family that made a video wishing us luck in the national tournament. We already thought we were going to play against the University of Virginia, which is one of the few top 16 teams around our region. It’s going to be challenging, especially for me as their #3 player is ranked #1 in the nation, and I currently hold the number 3 spot for FDU. The fact that I might play the best player in the nation gives me extra motivation to work even harder on and off the court in order to do the best I can do. One of the reasons for our success this season was our ability to deal with the hard situations and important points. I think it prepared our team to compete at a higher level, and now it’s the final lap to reach the ideal mental stage for the national competition.
