By AnnaGrace Hale | Sports Writer

Baylor men’s tennis senior Finn Bass claimed the ITA Texas Regional singles title Tuesday afternoon at the Hurd Tennis Center. After six days of play in Waco, the tournament came to a close with Bass at the top of the singles bracket following a 6-2, 6-2 win.

Head coach Michael Woodson said Bass has been putting in the work the last few years and was just waiting for his time to be right. Now is his time.

“Finn has been doing the right things for a while now, but you don’t always see the fruits of your labor in the time that you would necessarily want it,” Woodson said. “[It] certainly doesn’t happen overnight. So, it’s been really impressive to see him, I would say over the last two years, doing everything he needs to do to give himself the best chance to raise his level.”

Leading up to the final, Bass faced TCU’s Sebastian Gorzny and stole the match.

“[I won] 6-1, 6-2 against a TCU player, which is never easy.” Bass said. “Super tough, but tactically played really well. Didn’t make a lot of errors and still played really aggressive.”

On Tuesday, Bass stepped onto the court against Texas A&M’s Pierce Rollins. The match was a chilly one, but the Brit said his locked-in concentration gave him the edge.

“We are both aggressive players,” Bass said. “I think what I did better is I managed to hold my mental ability a bit better than he did in tricky conditions. When it’s cold and the balls are kind of flying, not playing as fast as [the courts] usually would, you just have to play a bit more within yourself.”

As one of the seniors this season, Bass has stepped into a leadership role for this Baylor team.

“Really enjoying my time as captain and helping the freshmen settle in,” Bass said. “They’ve got great talent. We’ve got a lot of potential in the team this year. It’s just making sure we’re all working together for the same common goal and just being the best versions of ourselves every day.”

The squad has lost some senior leadership after Sven Lah and Matias Soto graduated last season. Additionally, former court one star Adrian Boitan began his pro journey this year. Both losses leave some big shoes to fill. Now, the program has welcomed two new freshmen, Hungarian Zsombor Velcz and French Martin Breysach.

This local tournament was an opportunity for the team to come together in one place. The fall season is very individualized with players participating in different tournaments across the country. With athletes scattered, this weekend was beneficial to get the team on the same page.

“It’s not that often we see everyone together and work through things or talk through stuff,” Woodson said, “We’ve welcomed the opportunity to host regionals so that everybody can be together and kind of regroup at the end of every day.”

After this regional win, Bass has secured a place in the ITA Fall Nationals in San Diego starting Nov. 2. Throughout the rest of the fall, the Bears will compete individually in different tournaments.