Crimson Tide Top 5: Men’s Tennis
Although the program has been in existence since 1949, Alabama men’s tennis is still finding its footing in the sport’s landscape.
As a whole, the Crimson Tide has had 10 doubles All-Americans and nine singles All-Americans, to go along with 19 NCAA Championship appearances.
Just recently in the spring of 2019, doubles partners Mazen Osama and Patrick Kaukovalta became the first Alabama players ever to reach the final of an NCAA championship.
Just 42 players in the school’s history have earned All-SEC honors. However, Alabama has been able to produce multiple Olympians like Venezuela Juan Carlos Bianchi, Greece’s Constantinos Efremoglou and South Africa’s Ellis Ferreira.
5. Francisco Rodriguez
A two-time singles All-American in 1998 and 1999, Rodriguez ranks ninth in singles wins in program history with 79.
Following the end of the 1999 season, Rodriguez ranked 10th in the nation in singles play, which at the time, was the highest for any member of the Crimson Tide.
4. Ellis Ferreira
Ferreira earned doubles All-American honors in three straight seasons from 1989 to 1991. He was also a First Team All-SEC honors winner in both singles and doubles in 1990 and 1991.
His 158 total wins rank third in Alabama history. The furthest he went in an NCAA Championship was the semifinals with his partner John Stimpson in 1990.
3. Andy Solis
Solis’ 1983 season, where he compiled a 33-7 record, is still the best winning percentage for a single year in Alabama history.
He is one of only two players in school history to reach the 200-total-win mark. Solis has 205 victories, 118 of which have come via singles and 87 through doubles.
In 1984, Solis was named a singles All-American, while in 1985, he earned doubles All-American honors.
2. Mazen Osama
Osama ranks seventh all-time in school history in total career wins with a record of 149-90. He is a two-time doubles All-American, once in 2016 and again in 2019.
He was named a singles All-American in 2018 after finishing the year at No. 8, the highest ever for any Alabama singles player in history.
Osama and his doubles partner Kaukovolta reached the doubles final of the 2019 NCAA Championship before falling to UCLA. It was the first time in program history that an Alabama player had reached the final of a national championship.
1. Gregg Hahn
No player in the 70-plus year history of Crimson Tide tennis has been able to eclipse Hahn’s all-time total wins mark of 217.
He owned a .721 winning percentage (217-84) and has both the most singles (119) and doubles (98) wins.
In 1985, he was named a singles and doubles All-American, while earning another All-American nod in doubles in 1986.
Hahn was named to First Team All-SEC in all four of his years at Alabama and won the league’s individual championship in 1983 and the doubles title with Solis in 1985.
The Crimson Tide Top 5 will appear every day during the month of June on BamaCentral.
