St. Scholastica tops UMAC men's tennis preseason poll
2013 UMAC Men’s Tennis Coaches’ Poll
1. 25 Points - College of St. Scholastica (4 First Place Votes)
2. 21 Points - Northwestern College (1)
3. 14 Points - University of Minnesota Morris
4. 13 Points - Martin Luther College
5. 9 Points - Bethany Lutherran College
6. 6 Points - North Central University
ST. PAUL -- The College of St. Scholastica men's tennis team was selected as the preseason favorite in the 2013 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) preseason poll. Under the direction of head coach Wells Patten, the Saints have won 16 UMAC men’s tennis regular season championships.
1. College of St. Scholastica Saints
2012 Overall Record: 18-7
2012 UMAC Record: 10-0
2012 UMAC Finish: 1
Starters Returning: 6
Starters Lost: 3
The 2013 St. Scholastica men’s tennis team will be head coach Wells Patten’s deepest team yet. The Saints will be in search of their 17th consecutive UMAC regular season championship and 13th UMAC Tournament title.
The Saints will have to replace the winningest player in program history and 2012 UMAC Player of the Year Jacob Engelstad. Engelstad recorded a program record 61 career singles wins and 54 doubles victories. His 115 combined wins beat the previous record by 11 victories. All-UMAC selections Kevin Hilpert and Brian Lindberg are also gone.
With that said, the Saints will still have quality depth. All-UMAC selection James Mack returns to the top of the lineup and he will be joined up there this year by fellow Englishmen Chris Stainer. Dylan Kelly, Nick Lambrecht and Kolin Dean saw plenty of action in the middle and bottom of the lineup last year and will be key players again this season. Dean was an All-UMAC selection after also recording 16 doubles victories.
Expect to see more singles play from Cullen Combs, who has played doubles for the majority of his career up to this point. Tyler Bates is also back after an 11-win doubles season. Other newcomers for the Saints that will make an immediate impact include Mike Fontana, Guthrie Coughlin and Wells Brose. With the quality of depth for the Saints, expect a lot of split squads this season.
2. Northwestern College Eagles
2012 Overall Record: 14-13
2012 UMAC Record: 8-2
2012 UMAC Finish: 2
Starters Returning: 5
Starters Lost: 1
Northwestern College is coming off of a 2012 season that saw the Eagles record the second-most wins in program history as NWC went 14-13 overall while finishing with an 8-2 record in UMAC play. The bulk of last year’s squad returns for Northwestern, but the team has said its goodbyes to Caleb Kauss, who graduated in May after a three-year career at Nos. 1 and 2 singles with the Eagles. Back to lead the team in 2013 is David Knight, the 2011 UMAC Player of the Year and two-time all-conference selection. Knight went 8-1 in UMAC singles matches last season, all of which in the No. 1 singles position. Joining Knight will be fellow veterans Keagan Blancke and Jimmy Ekman, who both posted winning records at Nos. 3 and 4 singles in 2012. Blancke, an All-UMAC performer, (16-5, 10-0 UMAC in 2012) has lost just one conference singles match in the last two years while Ekman went 6-2 in UMAC play a year ago.
In addition to welcoming new players to the roster, Northwestern will also have a fresh face on its sideline in new head coach Matt Swigart, who replaces nine-year head coach John Sanny. Swigart played tennis for the Eagles for three years in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
3. University of Minnesota Morris Cougars
2012 Overall Record: 3-9
2012 UMAC Record: 3-7
2012 UMAC Finish: 4
Starters Returning: 5
Starters Lost: 1
The Cougars return key performers from last season and welcome newcomers that will add key depth to a team looking to move up the conference standings in 2013. Last year the Cougars won three matches after struggling through a 0-11 season in 2011.
Minnesota Morris returns three key starters in Dakota Frazier, Miall McCormick and Erik Vergiels. Frazier was the number one singles player and played on the number one doubles team. McCormick was the number three singles player and was a part of the number two doubles team.
Incoming players include a pair of basketball players on the 2012-13 Cougars team Ben Hoidal and Nick Jansen. In addition, Mike Maudal and Chris Rausch join the team after successful high school careers. Maudal was the number one player at New Ulm and Rausch was part of the Fergus Falls team that went to state.
4. Martin Luther College Knights
2012 Overall Record: 6-9
2012 UMAC Record: 6-4
2012 UMAC Finish: 3
Starters Returning: 3
Starters Lost: 3
The Martin Luther men’s tennis team will look to build on last season’s third place finish in the UMAC with the help of a pair of returning All-UMAC performers at the top of the line-up.
Seniors Scott Henrich and Paul Koester have been mainstays for the Knights at the top of the line-up for the last three seasons, and each were named All-UMAC a season ago. Henrich finished 2012 with a record of 7-7 in singles and doubles from the top spot in the line-up and has been named all-conference three times in his career, while Koester went 6-7 in singles from the number two spot and 7-6 in doubles while teaming with Henrich in the top spot. Russ Scoggins also returns for MLC after finishing 6-7 in singles and 7-7 in doubles in the middle of the line-up a season ago, and the team also welcomes back Nathaniel Jensen and Tom Gorzalski as experienced players who provide depth.
The team has several talented newcomers to the line-up this season, led by first-year players Kris Kuschel, Micah Koelpin and Jordan Bence.
5. Bethany Lutheran College Vikings
2012 Overall Record: 2-10
2012 UMAC Record: 2-8
2012 UMAC Finish: 5
Starters Returning: 1
Starters Lost: 5
The Bethany Lutheran men's tennis program ran a fall 2012 season for the first time in program history. The 2013 spring season brings in more practices and increased matches to the schedule. Sophomore Captain Ryan Koch is the lone returner with varsity experience and moves up from #2 singles to #1. Also returning to the program is sophomore Troy Hoyord. Rounding out the squad are freshmen Tim Wildauer, Brett Padfield, Paul Riediger, and Luke Mielner. Last year's program finished 2 and 8 in the conference and 2 and 10 overall. The main goals are to develop the young players for success in the years ahead.
Head Coach Andy Krueger is in his first season as the head coach at Bethany. Prior to that he was the head girl's tennis coach at Mankato East High School compiling a 39 and 36 record over 5 seasons. Assistant Coach Ryan Fredrickson is also joining the ranks of NCAA coaching for the first time. Assistant Chris Harstad will continue to work with the Bethany Tennis team.
6. North Central University Rams
2012 Overall Record: 1-9
2012 UMAC Record: 1-9
2012 UMAC Finish: 6
Starters Returning: 2
Starters Lost: 6
North Central will be led by first year head coach Larry Bach in 2013. Coach Bach is excited to take over the helm of the young Rams program. Coach Bach is excited about the excitement his team showed during fall practice and believes the enthusiasm of this underclassman group can make a mark in the history of a program in just its fifth season of NCAA play.
Sophomores Matt Gusmer and Sutton Rehwaldt are the lone returners from a team that was 1-9 in the UMAC last season. They combined to form the top doubles team for NCU a year ago while each playing 2-3 and 3-4 singles respectively. Freshmen Fabian Tunberg and Ian Bird are quality high school players that have experience in number one doubles play as well as top singles action as well. Coach Bach believes this core of players has the focus to receive instruction and improve the Rams standings in UMAC action in years to come.
The teams are currenlty competing against non-conference competition with each team slated to play a 10 contest conference schedule beginning in March. Following the conclusion of the regular season, four of the six teams will gather at the Baseline Tennis Center on the University of Minnesota campus in Minneapolis on May 3-4 for the UMAC Tournament, featuring team semifinal matches on Friday, May 3, with the winners facing each other in the tournament championship on Saturday, May 4.