Iowa tennis’ Allaf ready to defend ITA title
Iowa men’s tennis is set to compete at ITA Regionals in Norman, Oklahoma, this weekend. Senior Kareem Allaf is the tournament’s returning singles champion.
Iowa head coach Ross Wilson watches as Will Davies plays during a men’s tennis match between Iowa and Michigan State at the HTRC on Friday, April 19, 2019. The Hawkeyes defeated the Spartans, 5-2.
October 23, 2019
Norman, Oklahoma, has become the destination for the Midwest’s best collegiate tennis in the last two weeks. The University of Oklahoma has already played host to the women’s ITA Regional.
The Hawkeye women’s team had a terrific showing during its time in Oklahoma. Senior Elise Van Heuvelen Treadwell advanced to the tournament’s Elite Eight, and the team posted a 19-16 overall record in tournament play. The Hawkeyes went 16-13 in singles play and 3-3 in doubles.
Now, the men get their chance to impress in Norman as the city hosts the men’s ITA Regional.
“We are looking forward to our first trip together as a team this season,” head coach Ross Wilson said. “The regional tournament will give us a chance to see where we are in comparison to the best competition in our region.”
The Hawkeyes will make the trip south with momentum from both tournaments already played this season and the success they’ve had in the past at ITAs.
RELATED: Van Heuvelen Treadwell stars for Iowa in Norman
A solid showing at the Frank Beeman Invitational jump started the Hawkeyes fall session. The Hawkeyes went 14-7 across 21 matches. They finished 9-5 in singles and 5-2 in doubles. The doubles tandem of Will Davies and Joe Tyler even managed to earn a runner-up finish in the tournament’s doubles championship.
Success at the Frank Beeman Invitational isn’t the only thing that will help give Iowa momentum in Norman. Redshirt senior Kareem Allaf will also provide the Hawkeyes with a strong spark this weekend.
Allaf has already competed in one ITA event this fall. At the ITA’s All-American tournament, he advanced into the main draw ranked as the 69th best player in the country.
In addition to his previous ITA experience this season, Allaf has been particularly good at the ITA Regional tournament in previous seasons. Last fall, Allaf won the ITA Central Regional Singles Championship. joining Bryan Crowley and Tyler Cleveland as the only Hawkeyes to ever achieve such a feat.
With Allaf leading the way, this is the first time all season that the entirety of the men’s tennis roster will be competing together at one tournament. The regional event should be telling of what kind of team the Hawkeyes have this year.
Are the Hawkeyes contenders or pretenders? Thus far, evidence suggests that Iowa is definitely a contender. The team undoubtedly has the talent to achieve their ultimate goal of an NCAA tournament berth. Now, it’s just a matter of utilizing that talent and executing Wilson’s season-long plan.
“If you want to make NCAAs you’re going to need to get some good wins here in the fall,” Wilson said. “We were one spot away last year from making it in. We had some really nice wins, but making sure we take care of matches, especially in the Big Ten Conference, that we need to take care of [is important]. We have to win at home and be able to pull off a couple big wins on the road. If we can have that formula then we should be a little bit better than last year.”
