The UTR ITA Team of the Month honors were awarded to men’s and women’s programs from all five divisions in the month of March. The programs dominated their competition – recording ranked wins, securing conference titles, and in Georgia Gwinnett’s case setting the all-time collegiate win-streak record. Their success was reflected in the overall increase of their program’s Power 6.
The UTR ITA Team of the Month award is in its first year of inception. The UTR ITA Team of the Month awards program honors men’s and women’s teams from all five divisions (NCAA Division I, II, III, NAIA, and Junior College) with monthly awards during the spring dual-match season.
Division I
Texas A&M | UTR Power 6: 61.45
0.87 in UTR Power 6 | UTR profile
The Texas A&M Women’s team had a strong March defeating three teams – two of which were ranked in the top 15 – and rising to No. 17 in the nation. The Aggies started out the month by knocking off Mississippi State 4-0. The victory was the first of two shutouts orchestrated by A&M. The other came against No. 12 LSU in College Station. The Aggies’ other ranked win was over No. 14 Vanderbilt. A&M bounced back from dropping the doubles point and dominated the Commodores in singles – all matches were won in straight sets – on their home courts. The program’s lone loss in the month of March came to Kentucky. Their season record now stands at 13-5.
Florida | UTR Power 6: 80.91
0.48 in UTR Power 6 | UTR profile
March treated the Gators well. In addition to winning seven straight matches in March, Florida moved to the top of the Oracle ITA Team Rankings. The Gators were deep in SEC play during March but fit in two non-conference matchups against TCU (prev. 6) and Florida State. The Horned Frogs and Seminoles were two of the five programs that were shut out by Florida. The Tennessee Vols (prev. 3) were one of the two teams that managed to get on the board against the Gators. They dropped the match 5-2. All in all, Coach Shelton’s program has a 17-1 record on the season – the lone loss coming to Texas during Kickoff Weekend.
Division II
Concordia University Irvine | UTR Power 6: 49.84
0.64 in UTR Power 6 | UTR profile
The CUI Eagles had a packed schedule in March. They played nine matches during the month and only dropped one. The sole loss came to No. 11 Azuza Pacific. The Eagles managed to take matches at No. 4 and No. 5 singles but were unable to overcome their opponents. Coach Sanchez’s team had no trouble with their other opponents though. The Eagles posted three shutouts in the month of March. They had wins over Colorado Mesa and California Lutheran – CUI blanked the latter twice. All in all, CUI allowed 10 points total to opponents during March.
Columbus State | UTR Power 6: 72.06
0.65 in UTR Power 6 | UTR profile
The Columbus State Men’s tennis team was successful through the Division II ITA National Team Indoor Championship and continued their domination into March. The Cougars played seven matches during the month — six of which were shutouts. Four of the matches were against ranked teams — the highest being No. 7 Valdosta State. The top-10 matchup was the closest a program got to defeating the Cougars all season. Freshman Martinetti put together a comeback in the third set and rattled off six straight games to clinch the victory for the Cougars. Columbus State’s other ranked wins were over No. 16 Wingate, No. 25 Southwest Baptist, and No. 20 Flagler. Coach Isaacs’ program has not lost a match in the last two seasons.
Division III
Bridgewater College | UTR Power 6: 24.65
0.51 in UTR Power 6 | UTR profile
The Bridgewater Eagles kicked off their season in March and remain undefeated at this time. Coach Robinson’s team made a statement with their first match of the season. They blanked Mary Baldwin on their home courts. The wins kept coming for the Eagles after that. Their win streak currently sits at five straight. Bridgewater’s match with Randolph-Macon was the Eagles’ closest match in March. The conference matchup came down to the final match on No. 6 singles. Bridgewater freshman Roeber dropped her first set, but she strung together two dominant sets to clinch the victory.
Gustavus Adolphus | UTR Power 6: 62.69
0.37 in UTR Power 6 | UTR profile
The Gustavus men hit the ground running in March. Their first match of the season on March 5th against St. Olaf was a shutout. The Gusties recorded five shutouts during March – the majority of their seven wins. Gustavus’ sole loss came to Division I opponent Drake. The Gusties left Des Moines with wins at No. 2 and No. 6 singles, and No. 2 doubles. Before the loss, the program had only allowed three points total to opponents. The Gusties currently hold a 7-2 record and are 3-0 in conference play.
NAIA
Georgia Gwinnett College | UTR Power 6: 56.24
0.93 in UTR Power 6 | UTR profile
Georgia Gwinnett’s Women’s tennis program remained undefeated through the month of March. The Grizzlies strung together six victories — five of which were shutouts. To open the month, GGC downed Division II opponent Montevallo in back-to-back matches. The Falcons were not able to secure a point during either match. The Grizzlies asserted their dominance and claimed three ranked wins during March. No. 9 Indiana Wesleyan was the only program to record a point against the Grizzlies. IWU’s Dveksler was the only student-athlete to get on the board for the Wildcats. The Grizzlies’ win streak sits at 34 straight matches dating back to the 2018-19 season.
Georgia Gwinnett College | UTR Power 6: 72.91
0.37 in UTR Power 6 | UTR profile
Coach Hodges and his Grizzlies continued to tear through their opponents in the month of March. Aside from setting the all-time collegiate win-streak record with their victory over No. 14 Cumberlands, the Grizzlies posted six shutouts over NAIA, Division II, and Division III programs alike. GGC allowed three points total to opponents during March. No. 4 William Carey came the closest to downing the Grizzlies, but still fell 5-2. The program’s last match in March was against DIII powerhouse Emory. The Eagles did not stand a chance against the Grizzlies and fell 7-0. Georgia Gwinnett’s win streak currently sits at 141 consecutive matches.
Junior College
Iowa Central Community College | UTR Power 6: 32.84
0.74 in UTR Power 6 | UTR profile
Iowa Central’s opponents did not stand a chance against the Tritons in the month of March. Coach Thor’s program shutout all four of their opponents. They defeated Hinds Community College, Meridian Community College, Concordia University, Nebraska, and Coe College. Their win streak currently sits at nine straight.
Mesa Community College | UTR Power 6: 51.52
0.60 in UTR Power 6 | UTR profile
The Thunderbirds powered through the month of March. They remain undefeated with a 5-0 record. Three of their wins were shutouts coming at the expense of Glendale Community College and Paradise Valley Community College – MCC blanking the latter twice. The Thunderbirds showed their grit during their first meeting of the season with Pima Community College. MCC was boosted to victory by their strong doubles pairings and talented top half of the lineup. At the end of the month, MCC faced Pima again and widened their margin of victory – this time winning 6-3. The victory clinched the ACCAC regular-season title for the Thunderbirds.
ITA UTR Team of the Month Criteria
The ITA UTR Team of the Month honors a collegiate tennis team who showed the largest increase in its UTR Power 6 rating over the course of the previous month.
Power 6 is a metric created and developed by UTR to measure the strength of a College team. It is calculated by adding up the individual UTRs of the top-6 players on a team and then showing the exact Power 6 including the two decimals.
