ALFRED, NY – The Alfred University men's tennis team is gearing up for the 2026 season, which starts against Penn State Harrisburg on Tuesday, March 10, in Hilton Head, South Carolina.
 
Head Coach Jake Fisler has high hopes for the Saxons this season. He brings in a really strong recruiting class as well as returners ready to put in the work.
 
"We've set ourselves up for success," Coach Fisler said. "We had a pretty good fall showing and we're looking to sort of build on that momentum as we head into the spring."
 
AU played four matches in the fall. The Saxons won against Thiel College, 7-0, on Friday, October 24. AU also competed in the Wilkes Doubles Tournament at Wilkes University on Sunday, October 19. The team of Matthew Bittel (Wellsville, NY/Wellsville) and newcomer André López Jiménez (Mexico City, Mexico/PrepaTec Esmeralda) finished 5-1 during the tournament.
 
The team has laid the groundwork for where they want to be and what the hard work will entail. Coach Fisler noted the biggest thing was "self belief and buying into the process from the guys, knowing that we will have the opportunity to really make a big push in conference play as we head into it this spring."
 
AU will have its two All-Empire Second Team honorees from a season ago in Breece Erickson (Goshen, IN/Bethany Christian) and Ricardo Alvarez Janik (La Orotava, Spain/Colegio Casa Azul).
 
Erickson led the Saxons with seven wins in singles, earning four at No. 2 and three at No. 1. He became the first Saxon to have seven or more victories since Wes Dennison in 2021.

Janik recorded a 5-5 record at No. 1 singles during his first year with AU. He tallied a four-game winning streak that lasted from March 13 to April 2, including E8 victories at Nazareth University and Houghton University.
 
Bittel enters his second season as team captain for the Saxons. According to Fisler, he has done a great job of embodying someone who takes advantage of all academic and athletic opportunities at AU, in addition to being a good mentor to the younger players on the team.
 
Along with Jimenez, the Saxons welcome Josh Erickson (Falconer, NY/Falconer) and Anlun Zwerver (Koog Aan De Zaan, The Netherlands) to the squad.
 
"These guys are hungry and they're ready to play," Coach Fisler said. "The biggest strength we have as a group is it's not just one person: it's the entire team. We've gone over what everybody's role is on the team and what we can do to make everyone better. The team does a great job of making sure they're helping each other. Those are the things that we're most proud of here in our program."
 
AU begins the spring season down in Hilton Head, South Carolina, where it will play four opponents during its spring break. The Saxons' first match will be against Penn State Harrisburg on Tuesday, March 10. AU will round out the week with contests against Curry College (Wednesday, March 11), Franciscan University (Thursday, March 12), and Muhlenberg College (Friday, March 13).
 
The Saxons will play their first E8 match of the season at home against Nazareth University on Saturday, March 28, at 1:00 PM.
 
The E8 Championship Tournament will run from April 28-May 2.
 
"We're super excited about really kicking things off with our spring break trip down in Hilton Head, South Carolina," Coach Fisler said. "It'll be great to play teams from all over the country. It will give us a feel and also show the rest of the country what we can do and to represent AU tennis when we get back to conference play."
 
AU has been to the E8 Championship Tournament in three of the last seven years, with their last appearance during the 2023-24 season. The Saxons look to win their first league title in program history.
 
"We want to head to the playoffs and get to the E8 championship," Coach Fisler said. "That should be the goal for every team. That fuels the workload in those early morning practices."