The University of Mary Washington men’s tennis team turned in another in a long line of successful seasons in 2010-11, advancing to the third round of the NCAA Division III Tournament for the 12th consecutive year after finishing the entire year ranked in the national top 30 and garnering the school’s 12th straight Capital Athletic Conference championship. UMW won 17 matches, facing a schedule that included nearly every top program in the country among NCAA Division III schools.

After a successful run in three Fall events (the UMW Kickoff Classic, against primarily Division I competition; the Bloomsburg Invitational, and the ITA Regional Tournament), UMW opened the Spring with high hopes. After topping Division I George Mason University, 7-2, the Eagles hosted the ITA Indoor National Championships for the first time ever, and welcomed to Fredericksburg seven of the top 10 teams in the nation.

After falling to fourth-ranked Emory, the Eagles topped seventh-ranked Cal Lutheran, 5-4, for their first win over a ranked opponent on the season. Later that day, UMW fell, 6-3, to Trinity (Tx.) University, to finish sixth at the event.

After struggling on their annual Spring Break trip to California, UMW rebounded on the East Coast with a pair of wins upon returning, including a 6-3 win over nationally-ranked Washington & Lee University. In all, the Eagles won seven of their next eight matches, highlighted by a 5-4 win over nationally-ranked Denison University and a 7-2 win over Swarthmore College.

After a tough 5-4 loss at \#8 Carnegie Mellon, in which the Eagles began a stretch without \#1 singles player Sam Wichlin, who suffered Appendicitis, UMW closed the regular season by topping Salisbury University, Washington College, Christopher Newport University, and St. Mary’s College and dropping a decision at \#13 Johns Hopkins.

UMW opened play in the CAC Tournament by sweeping St. Mary’s College, 9-0, in the semifinals and then beat Salisbury, 5-4, for the league crown for the 12th straight time. With an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, the Eagles travelled to Gambier, Ohio, and, after a first round bye, defeated Kalamazoo College, 5-1, in the second round before falling to \#6 Kenyon College, 5-2, in the third round.

The Eagles saw Murata, the only senior on the team, named as the CAC Player of the Year. He was joined on the all-conference team by Will Apperson, Sam Wichlin, Riley Baver, Alex Blahkin, and Andrew Frisk. Head Coach Todd Helbling gained CAC Coach of the Year for the third straight year, and eighth time in the past 10 years.

Murata and Baver advanced to the individual national championships in Claremont, California, with Murata competing in both singles and doubles, and Baver joining for doubles.