Tennis has established itself as the most successful sport at Principia College since its beginnings — in 1934 for men and 1936 for women. Principia is proud of its rich tennis tradition which includes many conference championships, multiple All-Americans, National Champions and five appearances at the national team tournament – four for the women and one for the men. Tennis has six Principia College Gold and Blue Athletic Hall of Fame inductees; the 1983 Women’s National Championship Team, National Champions Courtney Allen and Toby Clark, All–Americans Paul Brauner and Alan Godfrey and their Coach, Larry Gerber.
Principia has some of the best collegiate tennis facilities in the Midwest. Six newly refinished outdoor courts and four indoor courts in Hexberg Tennis Center make Principia a popular location for competition.
Principia tennis teams have been members of the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) since 1991. The women have won the conference tournament 15 times and the men have won 10 times. Principia Coaches have won Coach of Year 12 times. Beginning in 2007, SLIAC Team Champions now earn an Automatic Qualification (AQ) to the First Round of the NCAA Division III National Tournament.The women won in 2007 and 2008, but lost in the first round to strong teams at the national tournament.
Both teams have conference championships as a realistic goal for 2009. The men are building on their 3rd place conference finish in 2008. Senior Captain Dan Batchelor will lead three sophomores and four freshmen in their pursuit of a conference title. The last time the men won conference was in 2005 when Batchelor was a freshman. On the women’s side, the top three singles players graduated and number four will be on an abroad this spring. Returning players will be stepping up to higher positions and new players will provide solid support in the lower half of the line-up. Seniors Jamie Furbush and K.C. Gahlon will captain and lead the team as they work hard to prepare for conference competition.
Both teams have been practicing since the first week of winter quarter and will host invitational tournaments in February as well as play some dual match competition prior to spring break. The second week of spring break both teams will head to Hilton Head Island, SC. for training and competition. At the start of spring quarter teams should be ready to take on conference opponents as they vie for seeding at the conference tournament which will be held at the end of April.
While the goal of a conference title is very tangible and measureable, we understand that the most important goal is to approach our training in a way that promotes dedication, preparation, and learning. We utilize our athletic learning themes.
Mission Statement To apply our daily study of Christian Science to our development as varsity tennis players, enabling us to overcome limitations, compete honestly and fairly, and to respect our teammates, our opponents, and ourselves.
