Whenever junior Nick Rinks is on the tennis court, he's focused and concentrated.
His mind is one step ahead of the game, always thinking about different strategies and ways to beat his opponent.
Every time he enters a match, he has one ultimate goal — to seal the win for himself and for his team.
"Nick is a leader on the court — he leads with results and he puts up wins," MSU head coach Gene Orlando said.
Rinks played at the U.S. Open junior tournament in 2002, which helped prepare him for collegiate-level tennis.
He models tennis superstar Roger Federer in his game, and is a tremendous asset to the club.
"He is a good, talented athlete who has had a lot of experience playing at a high level," Orlando said. "He has come a long way."
Rinks is a skilled athlete when it comes to playing both singles and doubles. His partner of two years is Adam Monich.
Together, the duo is the Spartans' No. 1 doubles team, ranked No. 32 in the country.
"We can hold our own against anyone in the country," Monich said.
The duo is hoping to perform well enough throughout the remainder of the season to clinch a spot in this year's NCAA Tournament, coming up in mid-May.
"I've known him since we were 12," Rinks said. "I know all his strengths and weaknesses."
The pair proved their determination to be the best Wednesday.
They took on Notre Dame's No. 1 doubles team, ranked No. 7 nationally and defeated the pair, 8-6, after taking the lead late in the match.
It's the second time during the dual-season the duo has defeated a top-10 doubles team, having previously beat Michigan's No. 2 ranked team March 16.
But Orlando said there is still a lot of business to take care of before the NCAA Tournament begins in May.
There are still a lot of matches to play, like matches this weekend against No. 71 Indiana on Saturday and No. 3 Ohio State on Sunday.
"We're looking to win the matches," Orlando said. "If we don't, then we're looking to play well and feel good about how we played."
Rinks is hoping to win all the matches he can in time for the tournament.
He said his goals for the year are to make the tournament and be named an All-American.
Before he graduates, his goal is for the whole men's team to make the tournament. "Playing (college tennis) has helped me develop as a player," Rinks said.
