HARTSVILLE, S.C. – With the opening of the Coker tennis season on Jan. 30 drawing nearer, the Coker College men's tennis team is getting back into the swing of things, preparing for what they hope is a successful 2016 campaign. The past few years, winning and Coker men's tennis seems to be often said in the same sentence and head coach Bill Simpson expects this season be nothing less than another historic chapter in Coker tennis history.
"Our outcome goal has remained the same, we want to win the conference championship, we want to win a regional title and want to win a national championship, those will always be our goals," said Simpson. "We have a team motto and that is to do the right thing, whether it's on the court or in the class room and I think with a focused mindset we can achieve some of those goals."
The Cobras were selected seventh in the SAC preseason poll, with Wingate topping the polls with nine first-place votes.
"The conference is tough, it is one of the toughest in Division II," said Simpson. "We do not look much into the rankings, it represents where our team was, not where we are now. So we will just use it as motivation."
The 2015-16 edition of the Cobras features two seniors and five sophomores making up the seven-man roster.
Headlining the roster is preseason All-SAC first team singles selection William Marrafao. The Jundiai, Sao Paulo native has been named to a postseason all-conference team each of his first three seasons and has also racked up preseason All-SAC nods in the last three seasons. Sophomore preseason All-SAC second team singles selection Mark Watt returns after a stellar freshman season where he was named the All-SAC honorable mention team. Also returning will be three-time all-conference selection Tom Sizeland.
"William has stepped up his play in singles as the No. 1 and the leader of this team and he is ready to tackle the tough competition in the SAC and in the region," said Simpson. "I am also excited to see Tom and Mark come back for us and step their play up."
Dominic Allan, Simon Bergbom and Felix Schweyer round out the returning cast for the Cobras. The trio of sophomores collected 23 combined wins last season, with 16 of those coming in conference matches. The lone newcomer is sophomore transfer Henrik Hellbe, who comes to Coker after spending a year at Northwood University.
"Henrik is a great addition to the team and I can not wait to watch him perform for us," Simpson stated. "He brings a new aspect to the team with his great personality and motivation."
Between playing and coaching, this is the fifth season Simpson has been a member of the Coker tennis team, in that time winning a regular season conference title 2012-13. However, Simpson believes this may be one of the most complete lineups he has been apart of.
"Every team is different, but I really like this team," said Simpson. "This team has the senior leadership that teams in the past may not have had. Compared to last year, we have everyone returning, so the chemistry is great and they are all match-hardened."
The Cobras will be tested with a 19-match schedule that features matchups against nine teams ranked the ITA preseason top-50 rankings. The non-conference slate consists of matchups against Lander (No. 5), Georgia College (No. 12), Young Harris (No. 39), Augusta University (No. 41), Francis Marion (No. 48) and Bluefield State (No. 50).
The 11-match SAC schedule is no easier, with matches against Wingate (No. 45), Queens (No. 46) and Tusculum (No. 47).
"I never schedule a match I don't think we can win," said Simpson. "In order to get ranked, you have to go out and beat ranked people and I think we have the ability to go out and do well and I am going to give my team that opportunity. I am excited and proud of our effort so far and I can't wait to see it pay off."
The Navy and Gold open up the 2016 season at Erskine on Saturday (Jan. 30), with the home opener against Lander set for Sunday (Jan. 31).