NE10 40th Anniversary Home Page
John Ippolito took over an Assumption men’s tennis program in the fall of 1997 which had gone 3-40 in conference play over the previous five seasons. He was determined to turn around the program, but no one could have imagined how quick and how dominant that turnaround would be.
Ippolito promptly led the Greyhounds to a 5-5 record in conference play and 15-8 mark overall in just his second season. Given time to recruit a full class for the 1998-99 season, the third-year head coach had grand ambitions, which were only enhanced by the team’s perfect 8-0 record in the fall of 1998. Freshman Ryan Richert took over the No. 1 spot and was joined at the top of the lineup by classmates Wayne Slattery and Keegan Holt to form a dynamic trio.
In the spring, Assumption was dominant during the regular season with a perfect 9-0 mark in conference play and 15-0 overall. The Greyhounds never allowed more than two points in any of their singles matches to claim the program’s first regular season championship. Richert was a perfect 14-0 at No. 1 singles while Slattery and Holt each went 13-1 at No. 2 and No. 3 singles respectively.
The group entered the NE10 Championship as the favorites and didn’t disappoint. Assumption claimed individual titles in five of the six singles flights and two of three doubles flights, with a second place finish at No. 3 doubles. The Greyhounds’ total score of 66 points was double second place Merrimack’s for the program’s first NE10 Title.
This perfect season in 1999 was an omen of things to come, as Ippolito didn’t lose another NE10 match at the helm of Assumption Tennis. The Greyhounds won the next eight NE10 Championships and put together an impressive list of accolades over that span which never will be matched. Ippolito stepped down following the 2007 but the dominance of his men’s tennis program lives on more than 20 years after it began.
- Assumption won 117 consecutive NE10 contests from 1999-2007, including both regular season and NE10 Tournament action. On the whole, the Greyhounds went 169-23 from the fall of 1998 to the spring of 2007 with eight trips to the NCAA Tournament.
- Assumption was the first NE10 Tennis program to win an NCAA Regional Title, in 2002, taking down Bloomsburg 5-4 and advancing to facing BYU Hawaii, where they fell 5-0.
- From 1999-2007 an Assumption student-athlete earned Player of the Year honors eight of nine years, while claiming Rookie of the Year six times over the nine-year span.
- Sean Kenney was a four-time NE10 Player of the Year selection from 2000-03. He is one of two NE10 student-athletes regardless of sport to achieve that accomplishment. He finished his career in conference action with a 44-2 mark in singles and 51-0 record in doubles.
- In 2007 the team was dominant, going a perfect 14-0 and winning ten of those matches by shutout. Overall the team gave up just five points to NE10 competition while registering 110.
Assumption Tennis Links of Note:
ABOUT THE NE10
Beginning its 40th anniversary season, the NE10 is an association of 14 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete.
Each year, 4,500 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, making the NE10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
