Grinnell, Iowa - Seniors Dan LaFountaine (left) and Nate Fox (right) concluded their stellar men’s tennis careers at Grinnell College by losing a hard-fought match in doubles quarterfinal round play at the NCAA Division III National Tournament Saturday, May 23, in Claremont, Calif.

Jamie Neely and Oscar Pena of Bowdoin slipped past the Pioneer duo by a score of 7-5, 7-6 (4) to move into Saturday night’s semifinals. LaFountaine and Fox finished the 2009 campaign with a record of 30-4.

“I was really pleased with the way our guys competed today,” said Grinnell coach Andy Hamilton. “Twice in today’s match they had to fight back after being down in each set. In the second set they were down 4-5 and tied it up to really put pressure on a very good team. In the end, the match could have gone either way. There were very close games throughout, but the Bowdoin players just scored a few extra points in important times.”

Hamilton not only praised his players, but the outpouring of support they received. “For these guys to know Grinnell tennis fans and Grinnell alumni have watched from a distance their performance at nationals is great,” said Hamilton. “The outpouring they’ve received from all types of people connected to Grinnell after the guys’ first victory on Friday was heartening. It’s also good to know that people recognize what quality young men these guys are and what they’ve done for our program.” 

Grinnell, Iowa - Grinnell College sophomore Juan Carlos Perez lost in the opening round of singles play at the NCAA Division III National Tennis Tournament Friday, May 22, in Claremont, Calif.

Middlebury’s Conrad Olson, seeded seventh in the field, defeated Perez by scores of 6-1 and 6-0 to advance to the second round. Perez finishes his 2009 campaign with a 26-6 record.

‘There could have been better matchups for Juan, but that’s the luck of the draw,” said Grinnell coach Andy Hamilton. “The player from Middlebury certainly has tournament experience and that proved to help him at times during the match. Although the score looked decisive, Juan played some really good points and they were long points. We’re excited for his future. Making the tournament is a great honor and now he understands the level of play at the top of the NCAA and it’s something to which he can aspire.”

Grinnell, Iowa - After making history by becoming Grinnell College’s first doubles entry in the NCAA Division III National Tennis Tournament, seniors Dan LaFountaine (left) and Nate Fox (right) established another milestone while competing in the national event on Friday, May 22, at Claremont, Calif.

LaFountaine and Fox earned the Pioneers’ first-ever win at the Division III Tourney by rallying to knock off David Ashlock and Dustin Phillips of Tyler-Texas 4-6, 6-0 and 6-1. The Pioneers have had three national singles entries in the past, and each has failed to make it past the opening round.

The win not only assured LaFountaine and Fox of All-America status, but sends them into Saturday afternoon’s quarterfinals where they’ll meet either third-seeded Michael Goodwin and Chris Goodwin of Emory or Jamie Neely and Oscar Pena of Bowdoin.

“After a long wait watching singles all day, our guys finally took the court at 3 p.m.,” said Grinnell coach Andy Hamilton. “They were a little excited in the first set and got broke late to lose. Between sets we talked about calming down and getting our quality of play up, and that was the difference in the match.

“Even though the scores in the second and third sets looked decisive, we really had to fight hard at different times in those sets. But our guys were up for the challenge, just as they have been all year. I’m incredibly pleased for Dan and Nate to get Grinnell’s first individual victory at the NCAA D-III Tourney level, because they’ve given so much to our program over the years.”

Grinnell, Iowa - DePauw University grabbed a 3-0 lead through doubles play and then hung on to defeat the Grinnell College men's tennis team 5-2 in the NCAA Division III Tournament regional semifinals on Saturday, May 9, in St. Louis, Mo.

DePauw, ranked 12th in the nation, got a 9-8 (7-4) win at No. 1 doubles against Dan LaFountaine-Nate Fox in a battle of regionally-ranked teams. Juan Carlos Perez and Sam Raife lost an 8-4 decision at the No. 2 spot and Dmitriy Glumov and Michael Cole fell 8-1 at No. 3.

In singles, Grinnell got wins from its top two players in Perez and LaFountaine. Perez posted a 6-1, 6-1 win and LaFountaine won 6-0, 6-3. DePauw posted wins at No. 4 over Raife and No.6 over Dluhos to complete the win and move on to a matchup with defending national champ Washington University.

Grinnell finished its campaign with an 18-10 record, but Perez has advanced to NCAA Tournament singles play, while LaFountaine and Fox will play in the NCAA doubles tournament.

"After getting swept in doubles for the first time all year, we could have been dead to rights stepping onto the singles court," said Grinnell coach Andy Hamilton. "But I'm pleased how everyone competed in singles. Hats off to Dan and Juan for gaining victories, and our other senior on the court, Nate Fox, was in his match and it could have gone either way. For the program's sake, our focus is now preparing Juan, Dan and Nate for the national individual tournament."

Grinnell, Iowa - The Grinnell College men’s tennis team will be represented on all fronts at the NCAA Division III Tournament.

Having already earned a spot in the team portion of the event, where the Pioneers travel to St. Louis, Mo., this weekend for the Central Regional, it was announced Wednesday, May 6, that seniors Dan LaFountaine and Nate Fox have been chosen for the 16-team NCAA D-III doubles field and sophomore Juan Carlos Perez has earned a spot in the 32-person singles field.

LaFountaine and Fox represent the first Grinnell doubles team to advance to nationals since the advent of the NCAA D-III Tournament, while Perez is the third Pioneer to qualify in singles play. LaFountaine and Fox own a 29-2 record in doubles this season, while Perez is 25-5 in singles matches.

The selection of teams and individuals for the championships is based on won-lost record, strength of schedule and eligibility and availability of student-athletes.

The singles and doubles championships will be held May 22-24 at Claremont McKenna, Harvey Mudd and Scripps Colleges in Claremont, Calif.

Grinnell, Iowa - Times have been announced for Central Regional competition of the 2009 NCAA Division III Men’s Tennis Championships hosted by Washington University in St. Louis this weekend.

Grinnell College, 18-9 on the season, is the tournament’s third seed and has a first-round bye. The Pioneers will face second-seeded DePauw University in the semifinals at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Tao Tennis Center. DePauw is ranked 12 th in the nation.

The tourney kicks off on Friday with a match between fourth-seeded Carthage College and fifth-seeded Westminster College at noon. That winner takes on top-seeded Washington University, the defending national champion and No. 1 team in the nation this season, at 10 a.m. Saturday.

The winners play at noon Sunday for the regional title.

"Certainly by drawing the No. 12 team in the country, it is evident that our matchup is a difficult one," said Grinnell coach Andy Hamilton, who noted DePauw will have added motivation as this head coach Tom Cath’s final season guiding the Tigers. "For us to be the No. 3 seed at the regional where the host is the defending national champion is a great honor. Fortunately, we've played the most difficult schedule in school history so we've seen teams as strong as DePauw. Now we just have to perform well."

Click Here For 2009 NCAA Tournament Bracket

The 2009 Midwest Conference Men’s Tennis Championships have begun just like the previous six - with Grinnell taking home the team title via a 5-1 victory over Monmouth at the Nielsen Tennis Center in Madison, Wisconsin. The Pioneers have claimed the MWC Championship and the conference’s automatic qualifier to the 2009 NCAA Tournament.

This marks Grinnell's 12 Conference Championship and its sixth consecutive, leaving Ripon as the only league team with a longer streak (eight from 1985-92).

In the title match, Grinnell's Dan LaFountaine and Nate Fox posted identical 6-1, 6-0 victories in their respective No. 2 and No. 3 flights. The Pioneers' Martin Dluhos was the only other singles winner (No. 6) as the three other flights went unfinished. Monmouth's only win was at the No. 3 doubles spot with Tyler Lampe and Ben Morrow earning the 8-4 victory. LaFountaine and Fox teamed together to take the No. 1 doubles flight 8-1, while teammates Dluhos and Juan Carlos Perez won at the No. 2 spot 8-2.

Grinnell advanced to the finals with a 5-0 sweep of Lawrence while Monmouth squeezed past St. Norbert 5-4. The Vikings went on to down the Green Knights 5-2 in the third-place match after losing their only other 2009 match-up with St. Norbert 5-4 on April 26.

The MWC Singles Championship Tournament begins at 8 a.m. on Saturday, May 2.

The 2009 Midwest Conference Men’s Tennis Championships will play out on Friday, Saturday and Sunday May, 1-3 at the Nielsen Tennis Center on the University of Wisconsin campus in Madison, Wisconsin. The MWC Team Champion will be crowned on Friday, with the individual singles and doubles tournaments following on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

In the team tournament field, the North Division shapes out the same as last year with St. Norbert (18-8, 4-0 MWC) holding the top seed and Lawrence (9-13, 3-1) following in the second slot. Five-time defending champion Grinnell (16-9, 4-0) has won the South Division while Monmouth (12-9, 3-1) will make its third tourney appearance in the last four years as the Fighting Scots fill out as the No. 2 seed. The opening round matches will take place at 8 a.m. with Monmouth taking on St. Norbert and Lawrence slated against Grinnell. On April 9, the Green Knights edged the Fighting Scots 5-4, while the Pioneers defeated the Vikings 9-0 on April 4. Grinnell can become only the second team to win six straight league titles with another crown in 2009, joining Ripon who tallied eight straight from 1985-92.

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Ripon has announced the hiring of Kevin Francis as the head coach of the school’s men's tennis team. Francis is a 1993 graduate of Ripon and is currently tied for eighth on Ripon's all-time win list, with a career record of 63-11. He was a part of three consecutive Midwest Conference championships (1990-92) and was named to the 1991 NCAA Division III All-American team, while advancing to the doubles quarterfinals of that year's D-III National Tournament.

After graduating from Ripon, Francis entered the coaching ranks as an assistant at Michigan State University in 1994. The following year, Francis was hired as the head coach at Alma College (MI). He would later go on to coach the Ripon women's tennis team from 2003-2004. Francis has also been a tennis pro at various tennis clubs in the Midwest, including clubs in Chicago and Milwaukee.

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Amanda Barkema was named the head men's and women's tennis coach at Knox College on May 27.

Barkema is currently working at the Wakonda Country Club in Des Moines, Iowa, where she teaches clinics and organizes the tennis pro shop. A 2008 graduate of Wartburg College, where she earned her degree in Business Administration and a minor in Accounting, Barkema was a four-year tennis letter winner for the Knights.

Barkema worked as a student assistant tennis recruiter and assistant equipment manager at Wartburg in 2007-08. She served as an assistant junior varsity tennis coach at Waverly-Shell Rock High School from 2005-07.

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