Men's Tennis | 2/27/2021 2:02:00 PM
MELBOURNE, Fla. – Barry University ranks No. 1 in the 2021 Sunshine State Conference Preseason Men's Tennis Coaches' Poll. Winners of seven of the last eight SSC tournaments, the Buccaneers, received 47 total points and six first-place votes in this year's ranking.
Saint Leo University bests Lynn University for second place in this year's poll, 43 to 39 points, respectively. The Lions also picked up the remaining two first-place votes. Florida Southern College's 28 points place them in fourth place, just two points ahead of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Rounding out the preseason conference ranking are Palm Beach Atlantic University (19 points), Rollins College (15 points), and Eckerd College (7 points).
SSC teams played between seven and 13 matches in 2020 due to the widespread Coronavirus. Barry, Embry-Riddle, Florida Southern, Lynn, and Saint Leo finished the halted season with winning percentages over .800. League teams combined for a 55-12 (.821) record in non-conference play last season, with no team sporting a losing record.
Barry remains the defending NCAA Division II Men's Tennis national champion after postseason competition was canceled in 2020 due to COVID-19. Barry, Lynn, and Rollins account for all nine of the SSC's men's tennis national championships. The Buccaneers have won the most recent titles (2010, 2013, 2015, & 2019), while the Fighting Knights won in 2007. The remaining four championships belong to the Tars, who last won the title in 2001.
Barry is powered by a strong singles lineup, headed by national #1 player Alejandro Ibañez Gallego, #10 Alessandro Giuliato and #42 Alejandro Ortega Palacios.
The first match of the 2021 season has Palm Beach Atlantic visiting Lynn in Boca Raton on Wednesday, March 3rd. The 2021 championship is slated for April 22nd and 25th. Tournament matches will be played at campus sites. The composite schedule for 2021 can be found here.
Below are the full results of the 2021 SSC preseason coaches' poll. Coaches are not allowed to vote for their teams (points: 7-6-5-4-3-2-1, first-place votes in parentheses).
| 2021 SSC MEN'S TENNIS PRESEASON COACHES POLL |
| Rank |
School (FPV) |
Total Points |
| 1 |
Barry (6) |
47 |
| 2 |
Saint Leo (2) |
43 |
| 3 |
Lynn |
39 |
| 4 |
Florida Southern |
28 |
| 5 |
Embry-Riddle |
26 |
| 6 |
Palm Beach Atlantic |
19 |
| 7 |
Rollins |
15 |
| 8 |
Eckerd |
7 |
SSC Men's Tennis History: National Champions | Conference Champions | All-SSC Teams | All-Americans
| Previous SSC Men's Tennis Polls |
| Year |
Predicted Winner (Actual Finish) |
Regular Season Champ (Preseason Prediction) |
Tournament Champ (Preseason Prediction) |
| 2020 |
Barry (N/A) |
Not Awarded Due to COVID-19 |
Not Awarded Due to COVID-20 |
| 2019 |
Barry (1st) |
Barry (1st) |
Barry (1st) |
| 2018 |
Barry (2nd) |
Saint Leo (3rd) |
Barry (1st) |
| 2017 |
Barry (1st) |
Barry (1st) |
Barry (1st) |
| 2016 |
Barry (2nd) |
Saint Leo (2nd) |
Saint Leo (2nd) |
| 2015 |
Barry (1st) |
Barry (1st) |
Barry (1st) |
| 2014 |
Barry (1st) |
Barry (1st) |
Barry (1st) |
ABOUT BARRYU MEN'S TENNIS
Barry has been one of the the top teams in NCAA Division II over the last 30+ years. The Bucs have advanced to the NCAA Tournament 25 times, including making the finals site 21 times. They hold the NCAA Division II record for championship match appearances with 11, winning four times. They have had 55 ITA All-Americans and 91 All-SSC players including SSC Players of the Year Herbert Bende (1997), Chris Meyer and Christian Witt (2000, co-PoY), Sebastian Losavio (2005), Thomas Hipp (2006), Marco Mokrzycki (2013) and Ahmed Triki (2014, 2015, 2017).
