Head coach Tyler Stephen is heading into his sixth year as the men's tennis coach and his fifth year as the women's coach.
"We’re not rebuilding, but we did lose our number one and two this year," Stephen said about the men's team. "Going into this fall there’s going to be a learning curve, our number three and four guys are going to step up. The men's team is ready to compete for the conference championship this fall. They have stayed pretty positive and will be there when it counts."
Stephen also discussed the outcome of fall recruitment. "Recruiting looks good, we have a student coming in that will play immediately. He’s a very good doubles player. Recruiting is important, but our core group will continue to develop as a team."
The men's team came up short against John Carroll University in the semi-finals of last year's tournament.
"We had a great season last year," Stephen said about the women’s team. "We had a great squad come in, five freshmen that make up almost the entire team. They all get along very well with each other, which is half of it. Erin Storrer made the quarter-finals of the ITA regionals, which is the farthest anybody from our program has ever gone in tennis. She earned some regional recognition with that run and now she’s on the top team in the entire Midwest. We’re excited to build some momentum for this fall. The women are going to be strong being a young team for the next few years."
The women's team won the OAC Championship before bowing out to tenth-ranked Sewanee in the second-round of the NCAA Championships.
Both tennis teams begin their seasons with away matches at Mount Vernon Nazarene on Tuesday, Sept. 7 at 4:30 p.m. After that, the women’s team faces off against Wooster in a home game on Saturday, Sept. 11 at 3:30 p.m., while the men’s team next goes head to head with Ohio Wesleyan in a home game on Thursday, Sept. 16 at 4 p.m.
Otterbein women's soccer mid-season report
