Meet the Warhawk Rookies!

Now that the off-season is in full swing, we thought it would be a good idea to have our fans and supporters meet the newcomers to the Warhawk tennis family.
Enjoy! and as always,
GO HAWKS!!

Warhawk Newbies Video

WIAC Championship

This past weekend the Women traveled to Nielsen Tennis center in Madison for the WIAC conference tournament.  This is the culmination of our fall conference season and determines the conference champion for the year.  Because of the spectacular play from our Lady Hawks during the regular season, we received the one seed, and first round byes in seven of the nine flights.  The tournament opened on Saturday with doubles action featuring the senior duo of Abby Day/ Hilary Franzen, who were making their conference tournament debut in the #3 doubles draw.  The seniors came out on fire taking down UW-Stout easily in the first round, and then avenging a regular season loss to a tough UW-Eau Claire team, 9-7.  Another senior making her debut in the conference championship lineup was Jess Vitale.  Jess received a #1 seed and a first round bye in the #6 singles flight and did not play till Sunday.  In her first match she came out focused (as all our experienced seniors do) and defeated UW-Stevens Point easily.  In the finals she was pushed by Paige Kuepers from UW-Eau Claire but came out victorious 6-2, 7-5 and claiming the #6 singles WIAC title.  Day/Franzen also claimed a conference title with an 8-3 win over UW-Lacrosse's Graham/Wabers.

The WIAC tournament also featured an amazing performance from senior captain Alexandra Bayliss as she claimed the #1 singles WIAC title and more importantly received the Judy Kruckman Scholar Athlete award.  See Judy Kruckman Award Article.  Bayliss also went undefeated in conference singles play over her four years at UW-Whitewater.  The WIAC tournament also featured Coach Barnes receiving his fourth WIAC coach of the year award.

All in all the Lady Hawks were able to capture 6 of the 9 flights including 5 of the 6 singles draws.  Most importantly the Ladies claimed their seventh consecutive WIAC conference championship and earned the #1 seed for the WIAC final four this spring.  The winner of which represents the WIAC in the NCAA Division III National team tournament.

For full scores and results click here

We had an accident with the MAC book so the pictures will be up ASAP.  :-(

ITA Nationals Trip To Ft. Meyers, Florida

After completing the two most successful ITA regional in team history UW-Whitewater went on to have the most successful Small College Championship experience the program has ever had.  Sending two singles players in Jake and Megan Humphreys and the doubles duo of Byron Balkin and Ben Shkylar to Ft, Meyers Fl.  made that by far the most national representatives Whitewater has ever had competing in the Small College Championships at one time.  Megan Humphreys also became the first player ever to leave the Small College Championships with a winning record going 2-1 and placing 5th in the nation for D3!  Balkin/Shklyar also placed the highest of any doubles team in Warhawk men's history taking 7th in the fall national.  Jake Humphreys on his way to 8th place, fell to the eventual finalist Skylar Butts 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 in what was possibly the match of the tournament.

Check out some Pictures from our trip to Ft. Meyers, Fl

UW-Whitewater Lady Hawks Host Scholarship Invite

This past weekend the Lady Hawks played host to 6 division 1 and 2 schools from across the Midwest.  This was an excellent opportunity for Whitewater to showcase their tremendous facilities along with their abilities to play competitive tennis at a level higher than our own.  The top schools in attendance were Northern Illinois, UW-Milwaukee,  and New Jersey Institute of Technology.  These schools were able to win most of the flights and although the Lady Hawks did not win any flights they battled hard and fought there way to no 0-3 records meaning every UW-Whitewater player got at least one win in every singles and doubles draw.  Some of the highlights of the weekend were Alexandra Bayliss and Megan Humphreys placing 4th and 5th respectively in the #1 singles draw along with Erika Williams placing 4th in the #3 singles draw.
Seeing this level of competition is a new experience for our Lady Hawks, and an experience coach Barnes and I feel will be very beneficial for the team.  In most fall season scenarios Whitewater is considered to be one of, if not the top team in the event.  By hosting this scholarship invite it allows to place ourselves amongst a higher standard of tennis and allows us to see how the next tier of players play and handle themselves on and off the court.

Click here for full scores and Results

Men Dominate ITA Regional Tournament

History continues to be made as the 2013-2014 UW-Whitewater Men's team dominated the ITA Central Regional tournament hosted by Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, MN.  The Men's team departed Whitewater on Thursday with their expectations set high, and their focus even higher.  This was demonstrated immediately as the men battled through three rain delays in the first two hours of the tournament Friday morning.  Battling through the element the Warhawks experienced tremendous success in the opening rounds which was highlighted by Senior Captian Brian Kleins upset win over the #5 seed Grant Liesner from host school Gustavus.  Because of the rain, matches became really backed up and forced some of the latest match times in tournament history.  The doubles combo of Bowman/Yuvaraj started their last match at 11:30 and came out victorious well after midnight.  Saturday brought more of the same as the elements continued to pile up.  Rain poured throughout the morning forcing play indoors and we also began to see how difficult it is to play two six to seven round tournaments in three days.  Players bodies began to cramp and the trainers life became much more difficult as he/she was constantly running out to different courts to help all sorts of players with different aliments.  Only the strongest survive to compete on Sunday as Jake Humphreys entered the semi-finals of singles and the doubles duo of Balkin/Shklyar became set to compete in the Doubles final.  On Sunday, we were finally blessed with some good weather as the competition took place outdoors.  Humphreys competed fiercely winning his semi-final match against the #1 seed Noah Sprinkle (Coe).  Jake then competed against Jack Michael (Carrol) in the ITA regional Final.  After a long and brutal match UW-Whitewater's Humphreys emerged victorious 5-7, 6-0, 6-2 earning him All-American honors and a spot in the Small college Nationals in Ft. Meyers, FL.  Joining them will be the doubles combo of Balkin/Shklyar who defeated the #2 seeded Gustavus team of Smith-Dennis/Al-Houni 6-3, 6-3.  This will be Balkin's second trip to the ITA small college Championships and the first for Shklyar.
Looking at the success over the last two weekends you can't help, but look back at were this program has come from.  Six years ago #1 singles player, and all time leader in wins for men's tennis, Alex Lowe became the first UW-Whitewater player to make the quarterfinals of this tournament.  This result is now common-place as we had three men and three women qualify for the singles quarterfinal this year alone.  Over the past ten years this program has grown into one of the more successful programs in the central region.  As this is a big accomplishment Coach Barnes and his players have there sights set higher.  Reaching new levels on the national scale as a team and competing for individual national titles is on the cusp for these teams and with the effort and focus we have seen from them so far, now is as good a time as any.

Doubles Championship Point

Singles Championship Point

Lady Hawks Land 3 in The Semi-Finals at Fall ITA

A tremedous weekend at Gustavus Adolphus College was capped off by a 6-3, 6-1 finals victory by now All-American Megan Humphreys.  "Seeing a freshman come into the ITA regional with the amount of confidence and poise she had is very rare," said coach Barnes.  Megan battled through all types of players and elements on her way to a very impressive tournament title.
The story of the Warhawks journey through the ITA is an interesting one to say the least.  On the surface having three of the four semi-finalists is an incredible accomplishment and something to be very proud of as a program.  However, digging deeper into the story we see that this means an all Whitewater semi-final.  This was a first experience for me as a coach, and for many of the family and fans we had viewing the match,  as senior captain Jackie Vitale took on senior captain Alexandra Bayliss. It was a tremedous fight that pushed both players to their limits in a match that eventually ended up in Alexandra's favor.  This meant that the next round was more of the same with teamates Alexandra Bayliss and Megan Humphreys competing against each other for the ITA championship.
Having teamates playing against each other is a very difficult experience for coaches, families, and other teamates watching the match.  Although we are all proud of the accomplishments the program made there is undoubtly, a unique tension throughout the stadium.  Obviously families have a rooting interest, but coaches and teamates just want to see both players doing well and its difficult to see either on the losing end.  These matches proved very difficult for the coaches to watch as every point we experience both joy and defeat.
At the end of the tournament tears of joy and tears of defeat were shed but with the toughness and desire i have grown accustom to seeing from this team.  I believe not only the three semi-finalists but all players and coaches have become stronger and more united then ever before.  Our Lady Hawks made history this past weekend, but what we gained and how we handled the adversity of the semi-final and the final as a program (families included) was nothing short of remarkable.  That attitude and that level of maturity is something that only comes from teams with strong senior leadership and an intense desire for team success.  It is because of this Coach Barnes and I are proud to call ourselves the coaches for this team and that is also why we have set or standards to new levels never reached before.

Bayliss Awarded Game Ball for Conference Opener

This past weekend the Lady Hawks opened their conference play on Friday at UW-Eau Claire and continued Saturday at UW-La Crosse.  The weekend featired some fine tennis from the women's team as they cruised to two 8-1 victories.  The highlight of the weekend was Alexandra Bayliss' play at #1 singles.  "Alexandra's performance was typical of how the team has played this year.  With losing four starters from last years team, for everyone to be able to step up and pick up where we left off against our two toughest conference rivals is impressive.  I was particulalrly impressed by Bayliss' singles effort."  said Coach Barnes.  Impressed may be an understatement as Bayliss took down Katie Gillman, 6-0, 6-0.  Gillman took Bayliss to three sets last year before Alexandra pulled out the win.  Bayliss then followed this performance with an impressive 6-1, 6-0 victory over Olivia Hartwick from UW-Eau Claire.  

After the long weekend Bayliss sat down with Coach Scanlan to do her fans a favor, and go through her tennis bag, in this seasons first bag check.

Alexandra Bayliss' Bag Check

UW-Whitewater Men's and Women's Tennis In Full Force This Weekend

This past weekend the Men's tennis team began their fall season competition at the Art Peterson Invite hosted by Western Illinois.  This tournament hosts teams from D1, D2, D3, and NAIA and is some great early competition.  Friday hosted the singles action as we saw our Warhawks take 4 of the 7 singles flights.  Jake Humphreys, Scott Butler, Kevin Friend (the "doubles specialist"), and Justin Bowman, won at the #1, #5, #6, #7 singles flights respectivly.  Saturday we saw some hot doubles action and even hotter weather as the Warhawks battled through some early season soreness and injuries to take 2 of the 3 doubles flights.  Scott Butler and Marty Beck at #2 doubles, and Brian Klien, and Daniel Etman at #3 doubles.  Overall the Warhawks had a very successful tournament taking 1st in 6 of the 11 flights and 3rd in the always tough #1 doubles draw thanks to Rithwik Rajshekhar Raman, and Kevin Friend.

On Saturday the Lady Hawks hosted Wheaton College at the UWW Stadium courts.  The Lady Hawks put together arguably there best performance ever against Wheaton winning 9-0.  The match featured the official line-up debut of three very hard working seniors;  Jess Vitale, Hillary Franzen, and Abby Day.  These ladies are a great representation not only of our program, but hard work as well.

Overall UW-W tennis had a very successful weekend and now that the season is in full force it is time to really step up the hard work!!!

Next Weekend the Lady Hawks travel to Lacrosse and Eau Claire for some important conference matches.
Women's Schedule

Go Hawks!

2013-2014 Tennis Season Begins

On Thursday the men's and women's team met at Coach Barnes' house for an annual season kick-off barbeque and a chance to get to know each other.  The Barnes' entertainment complex features ping-pong, pool, bags, sand volleyball, and much more.  All hosted and prepared by grill-master Barnes.

  

Saturday and Sunday had a less friendly feel to it, as the Womens team began competition against Edgewood College.  A match that was supposed to begin at at 3:30.  But because of rain and thunderstorms was pushed back roughly three hours beginning at 6:30.  Forcing Whitewater to open their season, under the lights.  Playing under the lights is a new experience for several of our players and it was good to see all the young players pull out victories.  In fact all UWW players, lineup and exhibition won bringing the total match count to 16-0 in Whitewaters favor.

Sunday, the lady hawks faced much tougher competition, in the Warhawk invite.  The Warhawk Invite is 6 seperate draws, a #1, #2 and a #3 singles and doubles draw.  At the end of each draw points are awarded to each team based on the performance of the individual for said team.  The Lady Hawks dominated the invite winning 5 of the 6 flights and taking 2nd in the other.  A special shout out to Megan Humprehys who won the #1 singles draw and is only a freshman!!  

Next week the men travel to Western Illinois University to participate in the Art Peterson Invite, while the Lady Hawks host a big regional match at home vs Wheaton College at 1:30 Pm Sat. Sep. 7.

Lady Hawks set to Begin Season Aug. 30th

Hello Warhawk Tennis Nation.  We are one day away from the Lady Hawk's season opener against Edgewood College, hosted at UW-Whitewater's Wangerin Stadium Courts, at 3:30. Coach Barnes and I are both more than excited to get the season underway, and after two weeks of drilling and challenge matches, I know the ladies are too.  Check out the video below to see some of the highlights from the 2013 women's pre-season.

Pre-season footage

2013 Pre-season Preview

Welcome to the new Warhawk Tennis Blog.  Let me start by saying what a tremendous honor and privilege it is to be working alongside coach Barnes with the Whitewater tennis program.  UWW-Tennis has done well, bringing success and professionalism to the forefront of the program, and I look forward to continuing this tradition for years to come.
      -Coach Erik Scanlan
With that being said lets get down to it.  The Lady Hawks reported to campus Sunday for move in day and are primed and ready for the season to start.  Practices started Monday, challenge matches began today, and our first match will be Aug. 30 against Edgewood College.  The following day the Lady Hawks will host the Warkhawk Invite at the Ron Wangerin stadium courts here on UWW's campus.  Both coaches and athletes are excited and looking forward to another successful  season both on the court and in the classroom.

Please continue checking in with us here at the Warhawk tennis blog.  You can also follow us on twitter at @uwwtennis for all your score and match info along with some fun and insightful interviews and comments from coaches and players alike.
Go Hawks!

Final Post from "The Bickett Zone"

Warhawk Tennis Fans,

It is with great regret that I inform you that I will be leaving my position as the Assistant Head Men's and Women's Tennis coach at UW-Whitewater to become the Director of Tennis at Premier Tennis & Fitness in Janesville, WI. I have greatly enjoyed my last 6 years working with the program, and I look forward to continuing to help out in a volunteer role. Luckily for the program Erik Scanlan will be taking over my post, and I know Erik will bring great knowledge and passion to the position.

Erik will be taking over the duties of the blog, and it will transition from "The Bickett Zone" to "The Scanny Skinny", and I look forward to being a strong follower of the skinny.

Coach Barnes had this excerpt to add:

"Daniel has done an amazing job the past six seasons helping guide the team to new heights, while both teams dominated conference play and reached the NCAA each of those seasons.  He was also named ITA assistant coach of the year for both men’s and women’s tennis during that stretch.  Coach Bickett will be missed, and I want to thank him for so many years of great service to our program.

It will be a nice transition with the hiring of Erik Scanlan, since he has already been involved with the program the past 5 years (4 as a player and 1 as a volunteer coach).  Erik brings an incredible playing background as a 4 year letter winner, two time team captain and having earned All-American Honors in 2010-11.  That same year he won the ITA regional doubles title and advanced to the ITA National Small College Championships.  He helped lead the team to four consecutive trips to the NCAA tournament and helped the team advance to the sweet sixteen in 2011.  In 2012 he was honored as a member of the All-Time WIAC men’s tennis team. 

In addition to Scanlan’s impressive playing resume, he comes to the program with a wealth of teaching experience.  Over the past several years he has worked at Four Lakes Athletic Club in Elkhorn WI, Forest City Tennis Club in Rockford IL, Green Acres Country Club in Northbrook, IL and has been a large part of the Warhawk Tennis Camps over the years.  Scanlan is a PTR certified teaching professional achieving the highest level “Professional”."


Thanks for everything and GO 'HAWKS!

Pictures from Matches, The Banquet, etc.

Here are some pictures from The 'Hawks and Lady 'Hawks last couple of matches and the end of the year banquet. Thanks Liz Bayliss for the pictures!

Midwest Invite

Lady 'Hawks vs. Coe and Grinnell

Warhawk Men Final Four

'Hawks vs. Kalamazoo

Lady 'Hawks vs. Carthage

Lady 'Hawks Senior Day

'Hawks Senior Day

End of Year Banquet