MILLERSVILLE Pa. - With Daniel Ducheyne, Axel Duclos, Milan Urbanek, and Adrian Weisser being new to the men's tennis squad, head coach Matt Helsel is looking for his four returning players to step up. Sandor Wulf, Paul Bagnouls, Joel Oetliker, and Arrav Bharti look to fill some big shoes left by the graduating seniors. As the fall season starts on Saturday, Sept. 20 at Goucher College, Helsel hopes his team learns how to work together quickly. 

How does the current team stack up against last year's team?
Matt Helsel (MH): Well, it's hard to compare the two cause we've got so many new faces. The last two years actually we lost out top four players both times. You lose your top four players two years in a row, you're not gonna be competitive after that. But this team, I think, has really embraced that and views it as a challenge. And we do have some challenging players, so we're excited to see what we can do. 

What specific areas has the team shown strength in during preseason practices?
MH: I see some quiet resolve. I don't see a lot of racket throwing, a lot of [attitude], so that's of course good. I see players trying to figure things out and go about their business. They're working hard and I think they're students of the gae, which goes a long way. They are a very respectful group of guys, so I'm excited to work with them and we've got a lot of work to do, but we'll see if we can get there. 

Which returning players do you see taking on a bigger role this year, and have any newcomers impressed you early on?
MH: We only have three guys remaining from two years ago. We have four guys remaining from last year. We definitely need to see a lot coming out of Sandor Wulf, Paul Bagnouls, Joel Oetliker, and Arrav Bharti. Those guys need to step it up big time his year, and they know the path that they have ahead of them but they're capable. We'll see how it plays out. 

What one word best captures the identity of this team, and why does it resonate with you?
MH: I'm gonna give a word that kind of describes what is gonna be our key. I'm not sure if it describes them, but it describes what's key for us and it's gonna be teamwork. They're gonna have to gel. We've got a lot of fresh faces and some players that were not used to in the playing high in the lineup in previous years. So, they're gonna have to gel and make each other better as much as they are working on making themselves better, and that's gonna dictate how far we go this year.   

The Marauders kick-start their season Saturday, Sept. 20 at Goucher College in Baltimore MD.