The Hillsdale College men's tennis team maintained its high standards against increasing levels of competition in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference and Midwest Region in 2022-23, continuing to excel on the court.
An experienced Chargers lineup opened the school year with a strong fall showing, highlighted by the best top-to-bottom performance as a team in their history of competing in the ITA Midwest Regional. For the first time in program history, all six singles players and all four doubles teams entered in the event won at least one match, highlighted by a quarterfinal run from junior Brennan Cimpeanu, a 2021-22 ITA All-American, in the A singles draw and a runner-up finish by freshman Nik Wastcoat in the C singles draw.
Thanks to strong play, Cimpeanu was invited to be one of 16 players to compete in the singles draw of the ITA Cup, the de facto NCAA DII individual singles and doubles national championship, for the second straight season, and was also invited to compete in doubles at the ITA Cup with partner Sean Barstow for the second straight year as well.
Hillsdale carried that momentum into a tough schedule in the fall season, finishing with a 13-8 dual meet record and spending most of the year in the Midwest Regional Rankings.
The Chargers rallied from two losses to open conference play in March to win five straight matches against G-MAC opponents, including an impressive 4-3 senior day victory over a tough Northwood team in their final home regular season match. That victory locked Hillsdale into a tie for second in the G-MAC regular season standings, with the Chargers claiming the second seed in the season-ending G-MAC Tournament on tiebreakers.
In tourney play, Hillsdale reached the G-MAC Tournament semifinals for the fifth-straight season, remaining among the top teams in the conference, but a short-handed Chargers team took a close loss to Walsh in the semifinals to end their run.
While the Chargers fell just short of their ultimate goal, it was still a successful season for Hillsdale on several fronts. The Chargers achieved a variety of milestones on the year, as head coach Keith Turner picked up his 200th career win as a collegiate coach in a 7-0 victory over Ashland on April 8, and three Chargers players – seniors Brian Hackman, Tyler Conrad and Brennan Cimpeanu – all surpassed the 100 win mark for their careers, the first Chargers to do so since Charlie Adams in 2019.
Hillsdale was well-represented on the season-ending All-G-MAC squad, with Cimpeanu and Conrad each earning first team All-Conference honors for the third straight season, and Hackman and Barstow receiving second team honors as well – Barstow's third All-G-MAC honor, and Hackman's second.
With focus turning to 2023-24, the Chargers will have to overcome the loss of Cimpeanu, who graduates as one of the best men's tennis players in program history, and Hackman, a lineup mainstay throughout his time at Hillsdale.
Hillsdale, however, does have a solid nucleus returning, led by three senior stalwarts – Conrad, back for a fifth year, Barstow, and three-year lineup regular Daniel Gilbert – who should set the tone for the team. The Chargers also look to return Aidan Pack, who played a big role for the team as a freshman in 2022-23 and should continue to grow as a player with a year under his belt.