As the month turns to September, the Ferris State Men’s and Women’s tennis teams begin the fall Invitationals before their seasons start in the spring.
Tennis begins its season in the fall with the Hillsdale Invite. Then, both teams play at the Davenport Invitational, and then the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Fall Regional. Mark Doren is back as head coach of both teams, and he’s looking forward to the fall season to get a feel for his teams.
“We are very excited for our fall season,” Doren said. “With this being our non-championship season, we are really focused on evaluating our growth from summer training and getting to know our incoming freshman better on and off the court. We only graduated 1 student-athlete from each team and brought in some really high-level players, so the excitement to get going is really high. Many teams in the GLIAC also improved greatly with new incoming players. So the stakes are even higher this year, but our teams are ready for the challenge.”
Women
The women (12-9, 6-2 in GLIAC last season) start their fall season before the men do, playing in the Hillsdale Invitational, an invite the girls’ team hasn’t played in before. With the graduation of senior Kennedy Dumas, that leaves one of the new upperclassmen to step up and be a leader for the team, and one of those is junior Katherine Earnest. The Traverse City native is looking forward to the new season and is confident in her team, both returners and the new players.
“I am super excited to get the fall season started,” Earnest said. “Playing alongside 3 new freshman teammates is also super exciting. Everyone has been working super hard in this first week of practice, and we are ready to show how great we are as a team and individually.”
Last season, the girls ended the regular season winning three of their last four matches. They then won their GLIAC quarterfinal match against Davenport before losing to Grand Valley in the GLIAC semifinals, then again to Tiffin in the NCAA Midwest Regional.
Men
The men (13-9, 5-2 in GLIAC last season) start their fall season with the Davenport Invitational on Friday, September 12, and Saturday, September 13. This year will be the 5th year in a row that the men have attended this invitational.
With senior Alessandro Santangelo having left after graduating, senior Erik Kovacs is now one of three seniors on the team. The Toronto, Canada native is excited for his last collegiate season and what it could bring, as well as what his future has in store for him.
“As a senior, I feel incredibly proud and excited heading into this season,” Kovacs said. “ It means a lot to me to be a leader for the freshmen on our team and to guide us as captain. Even though this may be my last year of college tennis, I’m proud of everything I’ve accomplished in my career, and it’s not over yet. I’ve got one last ride, one more GLIAC title to win, and one more national championship tournament. I stand proud as a Bulldog and grateful to wear the Ferris State colors. It’s been an honor to compete for this program, and I couldn’t be more excited for the journey ahead.”
The men also ended their season by winning three of their last four matches. The men beat Lake Superior State in the GLIAC quarterfinals before falling in the semifinals to Wayne State. The men then won in the NCAA Midwest Regional, getting their revenge against Wayne State before losing to the University of Indianapolis in the NCAA Midwest Region Championship
The Hillsdale Invite will be from Saturday, September 6, to Sunday, September 7, time to be determined later. The Davenport Invitational will be from Friday, September 12, to Saturday, September 13, time to be determined later as well.