I hate to start an article with a less than inspiring flashback, but recall Northwestern’s men’s tennis team’s success in the NCAA tournament. What comes to mind? At best, you likely summoned a traumatic flashback to a nail-biting loss to No. 4 Kentucky in the Round of 32 — a memory of what almost was. At worst, you remembered the five prior Round of 32 matches, all of which were also lost.
The ‘Cats have a historically difficult time advancing past the second round of the spring tourney. Many of those previous runs included a permutation of now-alums Steve Forman, Ivan Yatsuk, Simen Bratholm and Trice Pickens.