Net News, Volume 11
4/10/2025 7:18:00 PM | Men's Tennis
?Happy Spring Bama Tennis Fans,
How quickly the season has progressed as we now head into our last weekend of the regular season. We have seen improvement throughout the course of the year, a few untimely injuries to players over several weeks, fantastic home crowd support, dreadful bad luck with flight cancelations and delays, Crimson Racket Club memberships surpassing the 100-member mark, a rigorous SEC schedule that to date has included 4-3 outcomes in eight out of 12 matches and plenty of fun times inside the locker room (i.e. splash celebrations), in the airports (i.e. volley-volley drills in the terminal), on the road (i.e. heated battles of Among Us on the bus) and on the court (i.e. soccer tennis matches). Sometimes it's hard to see the forest through the trees, when in reality, that's what matters most. Tennis brings us together but so much more happens beyond the baseline during a college tennis season.
Here are some notable highlights during the SEC portion of the year that are good to review and be proud about:
- Senior Filip Planinsek has won all but one match this year in singles (currently 16-1). As of the latest college tennis national rankings released on April 8, he sits at No. 14 nationally. This is the second-highest singles ranking in the SEC behind Texas' Timo Legout who is at No. 2 in the country. Filip also has the highest win percentage among all No. 1 players in conference. Equally impressive is in his 16 wins, he has dropped just four sets.
- Damien Nezar and Andrii Zimnokh have become a strong doubles pair this season and moved to the top spot after starting the year at No. 2. They began as a new, unranked team and now sit at No. 28 in this week's national doubles rankings and have an impressive 8-2 SEC record and 13-5 overall.
- Roan Jones, currently No. 76 in the national singles rankings, has had his boxing gloves on all year. A No. 5 singles player a year ago, our junior from Shrewsbury (England) began the season at No. 2 singles and has held down this position. It has been new territory for him and he has taken some licks. His persistence and pluck n' grit, however, have fueled him each week in practice and his improvement can be seen each weekend. His latest three-set thriller over Auburn last week contributed to the team's exciting 4-3 come-from-behind Iron Bowl victory.Â
- Zach Foster was nominated by Alabama for the H. Boyd McWhorter Scholar-Athlete Post-Graduate Scholarship. The SEC provides the league's male and female McWhorter Scholar-Athlete of the Year Post-Graduate Scholarship recipients with a $20,000 post-graduate scholarship. The 30 remaining male & female finalists for the award will also receive a $10,000 post-graduate scholarship. A double major in Finance and Economics, Zach was named a CSC Academic All-American in 2024, just our second honoree in program history, and currently carries a 4.0 cumulative GPA. So while our San Antonio (Texas) senior works his tail off on the court, he also takes it upon himself to get it done in the classroom. The McWhorter winners will be announced on April 30.Â
- The team attended the International Coffee Hour to connect with several Alabama international students prior to our home match with Georgia in late February. The event is held every Friday from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. on campus at the Intercultural Center and features coffee, tea, snacks and great conversations with students from around the world. We have enjoyed attending several in the past and this year sponsored a Grand Slam snack menu featuring Strawberries n' Cream (Wimbledon), Croissants & Jam (French Open), Tim Tams (Australian Open) and Honey Duces Mocktails (U.S. Open). Several of the international students at the coffee hour joined us later that day for a Friday night thriller (and 4-3 win) over the Bulldogs.
- Several of the guys attended the men's breakfast held at the Capstone Village Senior Center prior to our Tennessee/Kentucky homestand. We have received tremendous support over the years from Capstone residents, especially from 92 year old super fan, David Struthwolf, who can be heard at home matches shouting out "Let's Go Bama!" and "RRRRRRRRRRolllll TIDE!" Andrii, Zach, Damien, Filip, Coach Sebo (Vile) and I shared laughs and stories with several of the guests which turned out to be a great way to start the day. We also had several (residents) that joined us that following Saturday for the first Crimson Racket Club Cookout and a 4-3 Bama victory over Kentucky.
- Alabama's Million Dollar Band has been in the stands twice this spring, igniting the Crimson Tide spirit and match time energy. Their familiar songs and enthusiasm have provided a unique and vital home court advantage for our team. It's such a treat to have them in the stands as their talents are in high demand. They also have an unblemished 2-0 record at matches this season as we captured a pair of 4-3 wins over Georgia and Auburn. Yea Alabama!
- The office of Student-Athlete Enhancement partnered with our team to celebrate National Student-Athlete Day at the Iron Bowl of Tennis on April 3. The event began prior to the first serve against our in-state rival and brought droves of athletes from several different sports to the Alabama Tennis Stadium. Fans were given "Pretty Loud For A Tennis Match" t-shirts, complimentary tacos, nachos and quesadillas from the Pastor's Kitchen food truck as well as Chik-fil-A sandwiches. There were several games and activities on the front lawn – a target tossing game that splashed buckets of cold water on top of several coaches, athletes and athletic department staff members, life sized Jenga, Connect 4, corn hole and pickle ball. The fans filled the bleachers more than I had ever seen at Alabama and created an incredibly "loud" atmosphere for our tennis match. Senior Damien Nezar's thrilling three-set victory clinched the Iron Bowl for the Tide. Match Bama!
This week we find ourselves in a home and away situation. First up is a trip to Baton Rouge (Louisiana) and a late afternoon Friday match-up against the Tigers. The purple and yellow fans will certainly give us a Bayou welcoming and some home cooking too. LSU is a tough place to compete, but then again, so is anywhere in the SEC. We look forward to the challenge ahead.Â
On Sunday, April 13, we have the final regular-season home match as we host Mississippi State at 1 p.m. The Crimson Racket Club will host their second and final cookout of the year (which is always a fan favorite) and we will honor our four seniors – Enzo Aguiard, Zach Foster, Damien Nezar and Filip Planinsek. Three of the four (Enzo, Zach, Filip) first arrived on campus as youngsters in July 2021. They enrolled in two summer school classes, trained daily on court and in the weight room, and began their Alabama journey. They have amassed many hours of dedication to their craft as well as pushed our program upward. Hard to believe they will compete on their home courts for the final time. Sunday promises to be a battle as the last three matches against our Starkville buddies have resulted in 4-3 outcomes.
So join us for what promises to be a magical day. Parents and friends of our seniors will be on hand for the celebration, and junior, Matias Ponce De Leon, will play the national anthem on his electric guitar (as he did back in April 2023).
Thanks to the Crimson Racket Club and their unwavering support all year. Win or lose, healthy or injured, inside or outside, day or night, cold, windy or hot, the membership has been such an invaluable piece to our success. We've had crowds larger than ever before and that's a testament to the incredible support that starts with the CRC and spreads throughout our "fan"-tastic community. Here's to a strong finish to our regular season and momentum to carry us forward to the SEC and NCAA Championships. Until next time…
Roll Tide,
George
Players Mentioned
