The men's tennis squad was passionate and supportive this season, bolstering one another through some long matches. As a result, they collected some big wins and finished over .500.

"Overall, I am happy we did better than last year and improved in the conference standings," said Head Coach Nick Karczynski, who finished his second season leading the program. "The team was well put together. They had more of a team dynamic, communicated and were eager to work."

The Cyclones finished 6-4 overall and 4-2 in the Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference for third place – two spots higher than last year. They took fourth place in the NJCAA Region 4 Tournament. Big wins included a shutout of Waubonsee Community College and 5-4 victories over McHenry County and Elgin Community colleges.

Freshmen Malachi Soto (Brother Rice) and Zachary DeMarco (Lockport) as well as the No. 3 doubles team, sophomore Dylan Roberts (Andrew) and DeMarco, advanced to the third place matches at regionals to end their seasons.

"Making it through the first round was wonderful. They played well all around. It was good to see them move forward at regionals," Karczynski noted.

At No. 6 singles, DeMarco posted the best record prior to regionals (8-2) earning a high seed. "He enjoyed playing and was focused and locked into his matches," Karczynski said. "He was stoic in the zone."

DeMarco and Soto played into several third-set tiebreakers this season, with Soto boasting an abnormally high 17-15 score in one match.

Roberts competed at No. 5 singles and always fought to win. He and DeMarco never gave up in any match. "They always tried hard and they really wanted to win, you could see that," Karczynski commented.

At No. 2 singles, freshman JoNick Coleman (Homewood-Flossmoor) was persistent on the court. "He won a decent number of matches and should do even better next season," Karczynski said. "He's very motivated."

In addition to Roberts, the Cyclones bid farewell to sophomores Erik Astranskas (Stagg) and Zack Johnson (Beecher), but Karczynski encouraged them to continue playing tennis in some capacity.

"I encourage the players to have healthy habits and continue playing after college. I also encourage them to train and condition all year," he said.

All the team's freshmen are expected to return, and Karczynski looks forward to welcoming incoming freshmen, who hopefully will provide another boost next season.