Season Review: 2015-16 Michigan Men's Tennis
6/20/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
June 20, 2016
• Leadership Council: Alex Knight, Davis Crocker, Jathan Malik, Tyler Gardiner
• Record: 21-8 overall, 8-3 Big Ten Conference (Tie-3rd place)
• Big Ten Tournament: Semifinals
• NCAA Tournament: Second round
The University of Michigan men's tennis team completed a turnaround season in 2016, increasing its win total from seven to 21 with essentially the same team. The Wolverines went 14-0 at the Varsity Tennis Center, marking the first undefeated season in school history at the VTC. U-M finished tied for the third in the Big Ten with an 8-3 record and made a run to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament. In its return to the NCAA Tournament, the Wolverines knocked off East Tennessee State in the first round before falling in a tight 4-2 match to No. 6 Wake Forest. Michigan, which began the season unranked, finished at No. 25 in the final ITA rankings.
Team Highlights
• Michigan completed the biggest turnaround in school history, going from seven wins in 2015 to 21 in 2016 behind a team with no seniors on the roster.
• Michigan's 21 wins are the third-best total in school history and the most since winning 26 matches in 1988. U-M had two five-match winning streaks during the season.
• The Maize and Blue returned to the NCAA Tournament after a one-year absence and nearly made it to the round of 16. Michigan survived a 4-3 win over East Tennessee State in the first round, with Davis Crocker and Kevin Wong winning within a minute of each other to secure the win. Michigan won the doubles point against No. 6 Wake Forest and went up 2-1, before the Demon Deacons won the next three matches off court.
• The Wolverines were nearly unbeatable when securing the doubles point this past season, finishing with an 18-1 record. U-M's only loss after winning the match's first point came in its final match of the season, a 4-2 loss to No. 6 Wake Forest in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
• The Wolverines began the season unranked before entering the top 75 at No. 54 on Feb. 3. Michigan broke into the top 25 on March 1, coming in at No. 19. U-M remained in the top 25 for the remainder of the season, finishing at No. 25 after just missing out on an NCAA Round of 16 berth.
• Michigan flipped its Big Ten record from 2015, going 8-3 in 2016 and finishing in a tie for third place.
Individual Highlights
• Junior/sophomore Alex Knight finished the season ranked No. 125 after he completed the majority of the dual-match season playing at No. 1 and No. 2. Knight ripped off 11 straight wins to start the dual-match season and finished with a 15-10 record. Knight was the lone Wolverine to earn All-Big Ten honors, picking up a second-team nod. He paired with sophomore Runhao Hua in doubles, going 12-7 at the top of the lineup. The duo was ranked for a portion of the season.
• Junior/sophomore Davis Crocker won the Big Ten Singles Championship in the fall, dropping just one set en route to the title. He is the first Wolverine to win the tournament since Jason Jung won in 2007. Crocker finished the season with a 20-10 singles record, becoming one of three Wolverines with at least 20 wins.
• Sophomore Carter Lin led the Wolverines in singles wins this past season, winning 23 matches. He also led the team with a 15-6 dual-match record, seeing time at No. 2 (1-1), No. 3 (7-5), No. 4 (5-0) and No. 5 (2-0). He clinched Michigan's come-from-behind win over No. 22 Tulsa on Feb. 28.
Honors and Awards
Alex Knight
Davis Crocker
Tyler Gardiner
Jathan Malik
Big Ten Conference
All-Big Ten (Second Team): Alex Knight
Sportsmanship Award: Davis Crocker
Big Ten Athlete of the Week
Jathan Malik (Feb. 9)
Academic All-Big Ten
Tyler Gardiner, Jr., business administration
Jathan Malik, Jr., organizational studies
Davis Crocker, Jr./So., sport management
Communications Contact: Sarah VanMetre
Players Mentioned
