Colorado State University Athletics
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Wyoming
Recap: Messick closes illustrious coaching career
4/28/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
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FORT COLLINS, Colo. - A 31-year-old era came to a close Thursday evening as Jon Messick coached the Colorado State tennis team for the final time. CSU dropped a 4-0 decision to Wyoming in the opening round of the Mountain West Championship, which is hosted by CSU and was played at the Fort Collins Country Club. Messick, who coached the men's team from 1985-96 and the women's team from 1989-2016, announced his retirement earlier this week.
"I was feeling it at the end of the match," Messick said. "I had to try and control myself. This is the part of coaching that's the most enjoyable - being out here with the players, the kids, the emotions. I know it's the right time for me to start doing something else, but I'll never be able to forget this. This has been an amazing part of my life."
Messick joins Harry Hughes, Tommy Tompkin, and John Mattos as the only coaches at the institution to coach for 30 years. Messick coached 14 student-athletes to all-conference honors, seven players and four doubles teams to regional rankings, and two players to national rankings. Since 1997, the Rams held team regional rankings seven times, including as high as 11th during the 2006-07 season. He has received countless accolades, including having a leadership award named in his honor by the USTA Intermountain.
CSU knew that drawing sixth-seeded Wyoming in the opening round would be a tall task. The Cowgirls had swept CSU five days earlier in both team's regular-season finale. But Thursday wasn't about the outcome. It was about celebrating Messick's illustrious career and Rams' four seniors - Maddie Buxton, Mollie Cooper, Aina Hernandez Soler and Laia Hernandez Soler.
And there was plenty of celebrating, including a handful of players traveling to Fort Collins to support Messick one last time.
"They surprised me in my office this morning," Messick said. "They showed up and I was like, `What the heck are you guys doing here?' They had planned it, and I've heard from numerous others. When you're coaching the girls sometimes you don't feel like they're listening and it's getting through. And then they talk about their experience here and you understand you were getting through you just don't know it at the time.
"To see these girls come back - to see the jobs they have, their careers and the lives they're leading after tennis - that's the most rewarding part of the job. Not the tennis, but what they accomplish from freshman year to graduation and beyond and the people they develop into. That's the best part of it."
On the court, Aina Hernandez Soler gave Wyoming's Dorottya Jonas all that she could handle. In a back-and-fort first set, Hernandez Soler won back-to-back games to take a 5-4 lead before Jonas won consecutive games to regain the lead at 6-5. Hernandez Soler wouldn't go down without a fight, tying the match at 6-6 and forcing a tiebreaker.
The first to seven, Jonas jumped out to a 6-2 advantage, but once again, Hernandez Soler kept fighting. She won the next three points to get to 6-5 before ultimately falling 7-5. Jonas won the second set, 6-1.
In No. 3 singles, Emily Kolbow dropped a 6-2, 6-2 decision to Nastya Tokareva before Laia Hernandez Soler fell 6-2, 6-3 at No. 1. In doubles action, Wyoming secured the point with 6-1 (No. 1) and 6-2 (No. 2) victories. CSU's Maddie Buxton/Caroline Henderson were leading 4-3 at No. 3 doubles when action was halted.
Buxton's final match in singles play was also ended early once Wyoming clinched the match. She was trailing 4-3 at No. 4 at that time. Teammate Madison Porter was down 3-2 at No. 5. Both players led for portions of their lone set.
"They fought hard tonight," Messick said. "They gave it everything they had and that's all that I've ever asked."
The match ends CSU's season at 5-15. Despite the record, there were several highlights including a four-match home win streak that spanned February-April and back-to-back wins earlier this month. And while Messick is stepping away from the program for the first time in more than three decades, he will still be nearby and is optimistic about the future of the program.
"I think we've signed four really good recruits for next year and we've got some commits for even two years down the road," he said. "I'm really excited to see those girls play. When I called them after I announced my retirement I told them, `I'm really excited to watch you guys come to Colorado State because I want to see you play and do well.' I'll be around; I won't be able to stay away."
The Mountain West Championship will continue through Sunday, including Friday in three different sites. For an updated bracket, click here.
Doubles
No. 1: Magdalena Stencel/Nastya Tokareva (WYO) def. Aina Hernandez Soler/Madison Porter (CSU) - 6-1
No. 2: Elisa Koonik/Tessa van Der Ploeg (WYO) def. Emily Kolbow/Celine Voss (CSU) - 6-2
No. 3: Maddie Buxton/Caroline Henderson (CSU) vs. Miranda Talbert/Dorottya Jonas (WYO) - DNF, 4-3
Singles
No. 1: Magdalena Stencel (WYO) def. Laia Hernandez Soler (CSU) - 6-2, 6-3
No. 2: Dorottya Jonas (WYO) def. Aina Hernandez Soler (CSU) - (7-6, 6-1
No. 3: Nastya Tokareva (WYO) def. Emily Kolbow (CSU) - (6-2, 6-2
No. 4: Maddie Buxton (CSU) vs. Elisa Koonik (WYO) - DNF, 3-4
No. 5: Madison Porter (CSU) vs. Sanne Hoekstra (WYO) - DNF, 2-3
No. 6: Celine Voss (CSU) vs. Tessa van Der Ploeg (WYO) - DNP
Players Mentioned
