Piotr Lomacki is a man of few words. However, if there is one thing that he can’t say enough, it’s that he loves everything about tennis.
“What’s my lifestyle? Tennis,” he said.
Lomacki is currently in his first season playing with the University of Miami men’s tennis team. He came in as a nationally ranked freshman from Poland, ranking 794th in the Association of Tennis Players (ATP) World Tour.
Although Lomacki has not been satisfied with his performance with the team thus far, he is continuing to work on bettering his craft.
“I take each day step by step,” Lomacki said. “If I play good tennis, it’s my ideal day. That’s all that matters.”
Lomacki started playing tennis at the age of five after his dad took him to a group lesson in his hometown of Warsaw.
At the age of 12, Lomacki gave up his involvement with soccer and focused on tennis since he considered himself more of an individualistic person and didn’t enjoy playing on teams.
Since then, Lomacki has gone on to win championships in Poland in both singles and doubles in almost every age category, as well as junior championships around the world, including the 2013 Ozerov Cup in Moscow.
“It was my first international tournament I won, so it was big – really big,” Lomacki said.
Lomacki made his first trip to the United States while touring different colleges to help him decide where he’d like to start his collegiate career.
“It was a long process to recruit,” he said. “I was looking at other schools, visited Mississippi State and University of Miami, and after the visits, I choose here. I really liked the tennis coaches, the school and the weather.”
Lomacki’s relationship with the men’s tennis team Head Coach Mario Rincon was the major deciding factor when choosing between colleges.
He regards Rincon as one of the best people he has ever met and wanted to spend his next four years under his training staff.
“Piotr is very talented – a hard worker. He loves tennis. He’s very competitive,” Rincon said. “If you let him practice seven hours a day, he will be out there.”
After joining the team in 2014, Lomacki had to battle against returning senior Wilfredo Gonzalez for the number one playing spot.
“My relationship with [Piotr] at the beginning was a little bit competitive,” Gonzalez said. “But now, it’s just a relationship of both [of us] trying to make the best out of the opportunity we have to be able to help the whole team.”
Their friendly rivalry was set aside as the two teammates combined their skills to win the first doubles match of the season against Notre Dame at the Olympia Fields Country Club Invite in Olympia Fields, Illinois – Lomacki’s first win of his collegiate career.
There, Lomacki would also win his first collegiate career singles match by beating Quentin Monaghan from Notre Dame in a three-hour three setter.