Thomas Parsons

Marco Salamanca, senior double business and marketing major begins to serve in his doubles match against the Warriors.

The Texas Wesleyan Rams Tennis program fell to the Louis and Clark (Idaho) Warriors [2 – 4] during the Steve Foster Invitational on March 8 at the Arlington Tennis Center (TX). 

After a [3 – 4] loss to Bethel College (KS) on March 6, the Rams looked to start a new chapter against the Warriors. The Ram, racking up two victories, got off to a good start in their doubles matches. Marco Salamanca, senior double business and marketing major was pleased with his outing against the Warriors. 

“Well, I played probably one of the best matches of the season so far,” Salamanca said. “I am really happy with the performance for sure.”  

Being the Rams’ no. 1 player, Salamanca is expected to face every university’s best challenger. Nicole Davis, Rams Head Tennis Coach, said that Salamanca faced a very tough competitor. 

“[He faced] a good around athletic kid that can get any ball,” Coach Davis said. “We had two sets or two matches that already had finished a set, and they were still [2 – 3] in games in their first set. So, they grinded out a lot of balls, and that’s always a tough opponent; it’s kind of like watching a boxing match.” 

Having attended Louis and Clark State College, Malte Sommer, a junior finance major, competed and reunited with old friends from his former school. 

“To be honest, it was nice seeing all my friends,” Sommer said. “It was nice competing with them, and I’m overall happy to see them because this really showed me that I’m happy with my decision in transferring.”

On March 8, the weather became another challenge; the average temperature was 50 degrees Fahrenheit with rain and wind chills. The original start time was at 8 a.m., but it was moved to 1 p.m. due to the rain. 

“We have been up since six in the morning, me and my husband,” Coach Davis said. “The men came up here and helped, and we basically worked for an hour on the courts getting ready, just so that we could play.” 

Despite their efforts, the rain kept coming which briefly paused their doubles matches. 

Unfortunately, the Rams finished the Steve Foster invitational with a loss to William Woods University (MO.) on Mar. 9 [1 – 4]. 

With the invitational over, the Rams look to turn the corner as they face Texas A&M Corpus Christi on Mar. 13 on the road.