Junior sports marketing major Martin Barbera recently recorded his 50th career match win against Georgia College at the beginning of February this year.
A native of Michoacan, Mexico, Barbera came a long way from home to play college tennis and receive a college education.
“I came to America because I wanted to play tennis and get a degree at the same time,” Barbera said.
Last year, the men’s tennis team went 13-8 overall and 7-1 in conference play, ending the season as regular season champions. Ranked first going into the post-season, the team fell to the number two seed, Belmont Abbey College, in a close match during the conference final.
“Obviously losing in the final was really tough for everyone,” Barbera said. “Every year our goal is to win the conference and the conference tournament. I think having been in the finals last year will help us during the conference tournament this year. We will be more used to the nerves having already played in a final before.”
Barbera was awarded first team all-conference last year and he was named conference player of the week multiple times. Slotted at the number two position last year, Barbera is excited about the new challenges he will face playing number one this season.
“I’m happy with how I have been playing lately so I’m excited to see how this season goes,” Barbera said. “My goal is to win as many matches as I can and for the team to win the conference and return to the final.”
Barbera also plays number one doubles alongside teammate Leonel Gonzalez.
“I think me and Leo are a pretty good team,” Barbera said. “We play well together. I think we will have a good record for doubles this season. I am confident that we will do well as a team overall too.”
Barbera says that his biggest role model is his dad.
“My dad is my role model because of his work ethic,” Barbera said. “He gives his all in everything he does and this pushes me to bring the same dedication to my game and studies.”
Barbera started playing tennis at a young age, and it has stuck with him ever since.
“I started playing tennis at age four after moving to Mexico,” Barbera said. “I enjoyed playing lots of different sports, but tennis stuck out to me. A big part of this was because of my first coach. He made the sessions fun while helping me improve, so it made me want to continue to play. As time went on I got better and realized that this is something I could pursue.”
When he is not on the tennis court or with friends, Barbera enjoys going to other sporting events on campus or playing other sports. His favorite sports to watch are basketball, soccer and American football. He also enjoys vacationing and seeing his family in Florida.
“One of my favorite places in the U.S. is Miami,” Barbera said. “Over breaks, I usually go there. I try to visit it whenever I can because I can visit my family there.”
Barbera’s favorite memory of playing tennis so far has been the team’s win against North Greenville last year.
“My favorite memory was when we won the regular season at North Greenville,” Barbera said. “If we won that match, we would be regular season champions since the teams tied with us had lost. So, after we won that match, we clinched the regular season.”