Fox 11 sports reporter Jude Wilbers caught up with the Green Bay men's tennis team on April 25 prior to the 2012 Horizon League Championships.
By Jude Wilbers, Fox 11
Phoenix tennis is on the rise: fox11online.com
GREEN BAY, Wis. - The Green Bay Phoenix men's tennis team has slowly
ascended to the top of the Horizon League under fourth year head coach
Mark Thomas.
The team won nine matches in his first season and
progressed to a school record seventeen wins in 2012, including a six
and one conference mark.
Thomas says the success begins with the players.
"Recruiting
is the life blood of any program and so we brought in players who were
better each year and added depth and last year was the best season we
ever had and we just built on it,” he said.
Thomas has gone far
and wide to gather the best student-athletes possible, the current
roster includes 5 players from Germany another England, and the team has
embraced the international flavor.
Senior Paul Swanson has a good perspective on the life experience the team has given him.
"I
definitely know more about Europe than a lot of American 22-year-olds
that's for sure. It's good you get a lot of experience with a lot of
different cultures,” said Swanson.
Erik Finkenbrink is one of the five Germans on the team and he appreciates having his countrymen with him in Green Bay.
"It's
nice to have our German buddies over here and it's nice to experience
different cultures. It's good for our future lives as well,” said
Finkenbrink.
The success of the 2012 Phoenix will only help build the program's reputation overseas.
“They
look at the roster and see I have German players here I know them, they
are good. I know I'm going to get to a good start because they come
from my home country as well.”
When I spoke with Craig Cox,
another of the foreign born players, he said that the team is close and
has found a way to forge a bond.
"We've all adapted a little to
each other, we've learned slang phrases, its good fun on the court. We
do have a lot of fun with each other,” said Cox.
The Phoenix will
look for team history this weekend at the conference tourney, a win
gets them in the NCAA's the first time and they also get a chance to
avenge their lone conference loss, a 4-3 to Wright State.
"Since I
came in my freshman year this is what me and the coaches have been
talking about it. It'd mean everything. We talk about it when we come to
practice everyday,” said Swanson.
Making the tournament would
represent and important milestone for the program. The ability to add
NCAA qualifier to the school's resume, according to Thomas, will
increase their recruiting foot print.
"We've done everything else
now. It's the last thing we haven't accomplished and if you're looking
for a recruiting standpoint, when you go to the NCAA's it shows you're a
program you want to go play for,” Thomas said.
Phoenix tennis is on the rise: fox11online.com