Berque Inks Three Players to National Letters of Intent
11/19/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan men's tennis coach Bruce Berque announced today (Friday, Nov. 19) that the Wolverines signed three student-athletes to National Letters of Intent during the early signing period. Peter Aarts (Pound Ridge, N.Y./Fox Lane HS), Scott Bruckmann (Sarasota, Fla./Saint Stephens Episcopal School, Fla.) and Andrew Mazlin (Altamonte Springs, Fla./Lyman HS) have all committed to join the U-M tennis program for the 2005-06 season.
"Our recruiting went very well," commented Berque. "We had three guys sign and we expect to add another player in the spring. All three of them are big athletic guys who have a lot of room for development. When you're looking at college players, in addition to looking at their character and what type of students they are, you're looking for guys who have a lot of potential for improvement and playing a big game. I believe all three of those guys have that potential."
Aarts has a wealth of experience playing on the junior circuit, having achieved a No. 5 USTA national ranking and a No. 2 sectional ranking in Boys 18-and-under singles in 2004. Aarts earned a No. 1 sectional ranking in Boys 16-and-under in 2003. Most recently, Aarts was a doubles semifinalist in the Canadian International Championships last month. He was also a singles semifinalist in the St. Maarten Junior Open in July.
"Peter has completely dedicated himself to tennis right now," said Berque. "He's done very well as a student and is finishing up his academics early. He's very passionate about tennis and he's got a goal for himself of being a professional player. It's exciting to have someone join the team who is at a very high level with his tennis now but is also very motivated to improve."
Bruckmann, who is currently ranked No. 112 nationally and No. 12 in Florida Boys 18-and-under singles, led Saint Stephens Episcopal to the Florida state championship during his junior season. Bruckmann went undefeated in his district, regional and state matches en route to earning team MVP honors that year. He was listed as high as No. 5 in the national Boys 16-and-under rankings.
"We started the recruiting process fairly late with Scott, but he's thrilled to be a part of Michigan," said Berque. "He came on a visit at the last minute and fell in love with the place and our team fell in love with him. I think it's going to be a great fit for us."
Mazlin currently lists No.16 nationally and No. 2 in Florida Boys 18-and-under singles. He has also achieved a No. 1 sectional ranking in Boys 18-and-under doubles. Mazlin captured the Florida state singles championship as a junior at Lyman High School last season.
"Andrew is extremely competitive and he's got a couple of big weapons already with his forehand and his serve," said Berque. "With some development and some technical work on some other areas of his game, I feel that he will make a huge jump once he gets into college."
Michigan will graduate four seniors following the 2004-05 campaign. David Anving (Tvaaker, Sweden/Varbergs Gymnasieskola), Josef Fischer (Nuernberg, Germany/Bradenton Academy), Vinny Gossain (Okemos, Mich./Okemos HS) and Michael Rubin (Canton, Ohio/Canton Central Catholic HS) will exhaust their eligibility after the completion of the dual match season
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
