Enemies of the Green Wave men’s tennis team, beware! The 2019 team is already brimming with experience. With four of the nine players entering their senior seasons, this year is expected to be an extremely successful one for Tulane. 

Last season, the Green Wave finished with a 14-13 overall record, going 3-2 in conference play.  Despite some limited success, Tulane was knocked out in the quarterfinals of the American Athletic Conference tournament, losing 4-3 to Temple University.

Still, the team made it to the NCAA tournament. This was Tulane’s fourth appearance in the NCAA tournament in as many years, though the team failed to place.

Looking forward, Green Wave tennis players will begin their 2019 campaign at the Crimson Tide Four-in-the-Fall Tournament at the University of Alabama. Tulane will be one of eight teams to compete in the three-day competition, facing some tough Big 12 and SEC opponents. 

The tournament kicks off on Friday, Sept. 14, at 9 a.m. with the first round of doubles matches. This tournament should not prove to be much of a threat to the Green Wave, as Tulane’s returning upperclassmen crushed the Crimson Tide in last year’s Alabama Invitational.

Senior Tim Ruetzel, the winner of last year’s Crimson Draw singles, set himself a high bar in his junior season by finish 125th in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings. Ruetzel is also the co-defending champion with Tulane teammate and doubles partner Akos Kotorman in the Crimson Draw doubles in last year’s tournament. 

New additions to this year’s team include freshmen Joseph Daw and Henry Lovett. Daw was rated as a three-star recruit and won his high school conference championships all four years he competed. Lovett was a five-star recruit whose team won the National High School Tennis All-American Championships.

After next week’s tournament in Tuscaloosa, the team will head to the University of South Carolina for the Gamecock Fall Invitational. The competition will run from Sept. 20-22. 

Other major tournaments include the ITA Fall National Championships on Nov. 6, the ITA National Team Indoor Championships on Feb. 14, and the American Athletic Conference Championships on April 16. 

Fans looking to follow Green Wave tennis success can also keep an eye out for Tulane alumnus Dominik Koepfer, who recently reached a career-high rank of 86th in the ATP world rankings.