Head Coach: Cam Long (2nd season)
2021-22 record: 9-9 overall, 4-2 GPAC (3rd)
Key returners: Juan Rabellino (Jr.); Eduardo Rojas (Jr.); Shawn Springer (So.).
Key losses: Jeremy Berryman; Joseph Bindl; Isaac Howes; Jack Kitson.
Key Newcomers: Santiago Abadia; Hugo Fuentes.
2022 GPAC All-Conference: Jeremiah Berryman (HM doubles); Joe Bindl (HM singles/doubles); Isaac Howes (singles); Eduardo Luzzi (singes; HM doubles); Juan Rabellino (HM doubles).
Outlook
Of the five Bulldogs who garnered some form of all-conference recognition in 2022, four graduated and moved on from the program. In other words, the lineup this spring will have a fresh look as Head Coach Cam Long enters his second season leading the Concordia Men’s Tennis program. The Bulldogs began the process of redefining themselves during the fall when they competed in two tournaments and three dual meets. They picked up a win over Bethel College that they hope they can build upon as action picks back up in the month of February.
The 2021-22 squad finished the campaign at 9-9 overall and placed third in the GPAC. In the conference’s ratings this spring, Concordia landed at No. 3 behind Midland and Doane.
“We’ve gotten good leadership from the group of people who have been through it at least once,” Long said. “The men have a couple more upperclassmen than the women. I think the seniors on the men’s team are really helping the team along. I think we can do really well, and I want the team to believe that. With such a young team, sometimes you don’t know what you’re up against. It’s about giving them confidence. We want to peak at the right time and have a good season.”
The Bulldogs have had time to put some pieces together since their final outing of the fall resulted in a 5-2 home loss to NCAA Division II William Jewell College. Juan Rabellino returns after he garnered honorable mention all-conference honors in doubles last season. At the top of the lineup, veteran Eduardo Rojas and freshman Hugo Fuentes took turns at the No. 1 singles spot. No longer can Concordia rely on the quartet of Jeremiah Berryman, Joe Bindl, Isaac Howes and Jack Kitson, which helped lead the program to the GPAC championship match in 2021.
It's time for a new wave of Bulldogs to make their mark. The top returners include not only Rabellino and Rojas, but also Manuel Rodriguez and Shawn Springer. Luke Johnson also takes on a leadership role within the program. Rodriguez went 6-0 while playing four different singles spots last season. In fall dual action, Rodriguez and freshman Santiago Abadia both went 2-1 in singles play in headlining the team’s performances. Long will certainly count on the development of Abadia (Bogota, Colombia) and Fuentes (Denia, Spain) moving forward.
One theme that has emerged has been the parity that exists throughout the lineup. There may not be a lot that separates players one through six, but there are some advantages that depth can give the Bulldogs, who believe they can be in the thick of things near the top of the conference standings. Based on last year, Concordia has some work to do to in order to catch up to the likes of Midland and Doane.
Said Long, “I think we have a solid squad throughout the lineup. Everybody’s pretty equal with one another, which makes it really competitive for practices. Everyone has their own different styles. As for the fall season, we started out with a win against Bethel and avenged a loss from last season. It was good to come out of the gates like that and see what we could do. Hopefully it gives us some confidence moving forward and shows us that we can be a competitive team and beat some quality opponents. We have a lot of freshmen still trying to figure things out. We have to keep it day-by-day and keep growing. There’s some talent there and we showed that in the fall.”
Also a Bogota, Colombia, native, Rojas sees a group that has mixed well from a relationship standpoint. That dynamic will be a key to meshing the doubles teams. Long tinkered with seven different doubles combinations during the fall portion of the season.
Said Rojas, “We had a lot of seniors leave last spring. This fall when the new guys came, I felt a really strong bond with the team. We’ve built strong relationships and have a good chemistry. We train a lot on court and try to do things off the court together. We want to have that chemistry together on and off the court. I know the lineup looks different but so far, all our players are at about the same level. We really support each other and because of that, we’re going to be secure in what we’re doing.”
The Bulldogs will have an opportunity to show how much they’ve grown since the fall when they host Grand View University inside the Fieldhouse on Saturday (Feb. 11). Concordia is scheduled to play 11 nonconference matches before opening GPAC play versus Hastings on March 25. Long will have an extended look at his full roster before the most significant contests of the campaign unfold.
Said Long, “It gives them a chance to see what they can do and allows us to figure out our doubles and singles lineups. It’s a little hard to make a lineup when you have a lot of players who are similar in talent level. There might be a little shifting around. By the end of the year, the lineup kind of figures itself out. I’m not super worried about it. I know we’ll get there. It’s good to step back and let it play out.”