Texas A&M coach Mark Weaver: "The adversity will strengthen us for the future"



by LORENZO CIOTTI

Texas A&M coach Mark Weaver: "The adversity will strengthen us for the future"
© Sam Craft / Texas A&M Athletics

Texas A&M women's tennis head coach Mark Weaver kindly granted an interview to Tennis World USA, in which he analyzed the Aggies' first half of the season.

Weaver was part of 23 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, nine rounds of 16, six conference championships, three Elite Eight appearances and Texas A&M's first trip to the NCAA Championship, in 2013.

We asked coach Weaver how he evaluates the first part of the Aggies' season.

"Not up to our expectations, but we are actually playing some very good tennis throughout most of our lineup. We need to tweak the doubles pairings a bit and we will be in good  shape. We scheduled very aggressively and have been on the road quite a bit.  Although our record isn’t what we would hope it would be,  I truly feel the adversity that we have gone through will toughen us up for later on down the road when it truly matters," he told.

Qualifying for the ITA National Indoor Championships is already a good starting point. What are your goals for spring?

"Qualifying for the national indoors is always a challenging feat and we were very happy with how we played and the manner in which we advanced. Our goals for the spring are to keep improving every day. Performing at a high and consistent level on a day to day basis and ultimately put ourselves in the best position to play for an SEC title and also the NCAA championships."

Regarding which student-athletes surprised you the most in the first half of the season, Coach Weaver told us:

"We think all of our players in the lineup are excellent tennis players and we have high expectations for all of them so I can’t say that anyone has surprised me more or have outperformed themselves."

Sam Weaver
Sam Weaver© Sam Craft / Texas A&M Athletics
 

How important is the experience of a coach in the balance of a team?

"I think having experience as a coach is of the upmost importance. There are so many variables, ups and downs and things thrown at your student athletes and the coaching staff as well throughout the season. It is extremely important for the coach to know how to manage each individual and everything that a team goes through on a day to day basis. If you aren’t handling things in the right manner behind the scenes, it’s hard for your team to stay focused on what truly matters," Weaver analyzed.

What are the aspects that your team can improve in the coming months?

"We need to sharpen our doubles skills a bit. We are competing against the nation’s best and one or two points here and there oftentimes determines who wins or loses. Stepping up to the line and being sure of yourself and knowing exactly what you want to do in the pressure situation is ultimately what it comes down to most of the time."

Regarding the mental health issue, coach Weaver explained:

"We oftentimes talk about routines and breathing. There is no magic formula to it. You just need a formula that works for you and stick with what works."