The 2021-22 Hope College Men's Tennis Team
Men's Tennis at a Glance
- Roster Size: 11
- Head Coach: Austin Hunt, first season
- 2021 Season Recap: With only freshmen and sophomores in the lineup, the Flying Dutchmen played in five non-league matches before going 6-1 in conference play. Hope finished second in the standings for the MIAA regular season and was runner-up in the MIAA Tournament.
- 2021 Postseason Honors: Sophomore Jacob Burkett became the Flying Dutchmen's seven MIAA MVP and headlined the All-MIAA team that included sophomore teammate Cameron Coates. Coates, Justin Fay and Tyler Koran claimed Intercollegiate Tennis Association Scholar-Athlete honors by recording a 3.5 grade point average or higher.
2021 Roster
The Flying Dutchmen feature a roster of eleven, with six juniors, two sophomores and three freshmen.
"The phrase that comes to mind for both of the teams' schedules is, "They are NO JOKE!" Both teams are going to be playing against great competition whether it be Cornerstone University, University of Chicago, Case Western Reserve University, Kalamazoo College, etc. Plenty of talented teams on our schedule." head coach Austin Hunt
Key Returners
Junior Jacob Burkett, pictured, tops the Flying Dutchmen lineup this season as he returns to the No. 1 singles spot, and remains in the No. 1 doubles pairing with Matt Henkel.
Junior Cameron Coates stays as Hope’s No. 2 singles lineup spot. He moves to the No. 2 doubles spot with partner senior Tyler Koran.
Senior Tyler Koran will compete at the No. 3 doubles spot for the Flying Dutchmen. He saw action at No. 3 singles, and No. 2 doubles as a sophomore.
Coach's Outlook
"Ever since I was given the amazing privilege of being the Head Tennis Coach at Hope, every day has been extremely exciting! For 8 years, I dreamt of coaching at Hope and the fact that it's happening is a little too real for me, haha! For the teams, I'm continually excited for them to prove to themselves that they really are leaders and that they all can come together and achieve some pretty amazing things! I try to stress to them as much as I possibly can that they have to choose to be the best versions of themselves on a daily basis and that if they can all do that consistently . . . these teams are going to do huge things! I'm very excited to simply see their consistent hard work pay off for them as the season goes on."
2022 Schedule
The Flying Dutchmen opened the 2022 season on Friday-Saturday, February 4-5; losing to NCAA Division II Davenport University but defeating NAIA Spring Arbor University. Hope is scheduled to play nine more non-league matches before the MIAA opener on Saturday, March 26 at home against Albion College. The Flying Dutchmen will have seven regular season matches before the MIAA tournament on Wednesday and Friday, May 4 and 6.
Coaching Staff
Austin Hunt was introduced as Hope College men's and women's tennis coach on July 27, 2021. He is the 13th men’s head coach for the Flying Dutchmen and the 15th women’s coach for the Flying Dutch.A native of Odessa, Texas, Hunt comes to Hope after coaching one season at GVSU. He helped the Lakers finish runner-up in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men’s regular-season standings and a tie for second place in the GLIAC women’s standings.
Austin Hunt holds a master’s degree in Sport Management from the University of Michigan (2017) and a bachelor’s degree in exercise science from Cornerstone University (2016). At Cornerstone, Hunt concluded his tennis career ranked fifth all-time with 94 career combined singles and doubles wins. His 46 singles wins while playing in the top half of the lineup are the fourth-most in team history as are his 48 doubles wins.
By the Numbers
- 13 — All-time head coaches for the Flying Dutchmen.
- 26 — Consecutive MIAA seasons in which a Hope men’s tennis player has earned All-MIAA honors
- 62 — Most wins all-time by a Flying Dutchmen tennis player: Rob Visscher, who went 62-22 from 1966-69
- 68 — Most doubles wins all-time by a Flying Dutchmen tennis player: Dan Mann, who finished 68-23 from 2000-03.
- 106— Years since the first Hope men’s tennis match against an outside opponent.
Home Court Advantage
Hope College's Etheridge Tennis Complex consists of the VandePoel-Heeringa Stadium, with 12 courts for outdoor play and the DeWitt Tennis Center, with six courts for indoor play. In 2013, the stadium courts won the Outdoor Tennis Court of the Year award, chosen by the American Sports Builders Association. In 2010, the Professional Tennis Registry rated the DeWitt Tennis Center the National Public Facility of the Year.
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Credits:
Tom Renner, Alan Babbitt