Tennis has established itself as the most successful sport at PrincipiaCollege 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.
We are also grateful for alumni support which helped make possible the construction of the Hexberg Tennis Center in 1988, a facility housing four indoor courts, ball machines, spectator seating, locker rooms, and offices. Hexberg enables Principia teams to practice and compete indoors in the winter months, as well as on rainy days in the spring.
Principia tennis teams have been members of the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference since 1991. The women have won the conference tournament 14 times and the men have won 10 times. Principia Coaches have won Coach of Year 11 times.
2007 was the first year the SLIAC Tennis Champions earned an AQ (Automatic Qualification) in the first round of the NCAA Division III National Tennis Tournament. The Principia Women won six of the nine flights and were finalists in the other three flights to win the conference tournament convincingly. All eight players were named to the All Conference Team. #1 Singles Senior Kat Pomeroy won the Player of the Year Award for the third time and remained undefeated in SLIAC competition for all four years. Coach Lyn De Laney was voted SLIAC Coach of the Year. The team had a great experience at the NCAA First Round Competition even though they lost to Methodist 5-0. The returning players are setting higher standards for themselves in hopes of earning another opportunity to qualify and improve their performance in 2008.
On the men’s side, 2007 success could be summed up in one word – improvement. While half of the men’s team was comprised of seniors, the team could still be described as inexperienced. Most of the players competed seasonally and several didn’t play competitively until they joined the team. A fifth place finish at conference produced some personal bests of the season. We say good bye to three seniors who improved immensely over their four years.
Looking forward to 2008, both teams show good promise. Six players return who had experience at the NCAA tournament. One new freshman has made the varsity squad and two more freshmen will be training on the JV squad. The men return three to the varsity squad. Add three freshmen who competed on their high school teams and one sophomore who is returning to school after a two year absence and the outlook for the men is much brighter. Six additional men will train on JV.
Both teams have conference championships as a realistic goal for 2008. Placing more demands on commitment and raising the bar in practice and competition began this fall as four players from each team attended the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Small College Regional Championships where they competed against players from teams that are ranked in the Central Region. A few individual matches were won, but more importantly players were challenged to lift their mental as well as their physical games in order to compete. Off season strength and fitness training will play a major role in the team’s improvement.
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.
