The UW men’s tennis team made a strong showing in their first outing of the season, winning all of their matches on their way to a 7-0 sweep of Eastern Washington. The victories helped to erase the painful memory of a disappointing loss to Wisconsin in the opening round of last year’s NCAA tournament.

“Well, I was eager to get this match going,” coach Matt Anger said. “We lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament last year. I was as eager as the guys were to get this season going and get improving.”

The team was pleased by the success, crediting it to their off-season practices.

“All of the guys put in a lot of work in the fall,” sophomore Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan said. “We hope it’s going to pay off during the season, and we’re off to a good start today.”

Nedunchezhiyan and senior team captain Patrik Fischer and had the strongest showings, losing only one game between them.

“I think I served really well today,” Nedunchezhiyan said. “I just made a lot of returns and just focused really well throughout the match, and that’s all I really needed to do today.”

For Fischer, his singles and doubles wins exorcised some demons.

“I remember two years ago I played against Eastern Washington and lost, so this time I was nervous,” Fischer said.

The nerves dissipated quickly for Fischer, who won his singles match 6-0, 6-0.

He said that he was consistent and had his baseline game working well.

Sophomore Martin Kildahl stepped smoothly into his new roles of No. 1 doubles and No. 3 singles, winning doubles 8-5 and singles 6-2, 6-2.

“Last year I never thought I would play one doubles and three singles,” Kildahl said. “I’ve improved a lot, so I feel I have a chance to have success at No. 3. I know we have a really tough schedule, and the Pac-10 is one of the best conferences. I’m really looking forward to the rest of the season.”

Anger said the team feels like it is in good shape but he knows they have some tough competition ahead.

“I think we are, as a team, ahead of where we were this time last year,” Anger said. “We still gotta improve though. We’re gonna have some tough matches later in the season.”

As a team they have grown and matured, which Nedunchezhiyan says is starting to pay off.

“Since there were so many freshmen last year, the team is getting to know each other much better,” Nedunchezhiyan said. “That’s helping us on and off the court.”

Reach reporter Zach Ruby at sports@dailyuw.com.