Mercer men’s tennis is looking for their first win this season in a home matchup against Jacksonville State University on Sunday, Feb. 8, at 10 a.m. The Bears fell 6-1 to the Gamecocks last season, and are looking for their first win against the team since the 2018-2019 season.
The team’s first match of the spring season took place on Jan. 11 when the team traveled to Tallahassee, Fla. to play Florida State University, falling 7–0. Following the spring opener, the Bears traveled to Orlando, Fla. a week later to compete against the University of Central Florida. Mercer earned two singles victories, with Shingo Masuda ‘28 winning at No. 5 and Esteban Davila Gasser ‘27 tasting victory at No. 6. Despite the individual wins, the Bears fell 5–2 in the match.
Mercer returned home for its home opener at the Copelan Tennis Complex against Georgia Southern University, who beat the Bears, 7-0.
The Bears are led by Head Coach Eric Hayes, who first joined the Bears in 2013 with over two decades of head coaching experience. He has since become the Bears’ most successful tennis coach, leading the men’s team to their best conference record in school history last season. Mercer held a 6-1 Southern Conference record and clinched a share of the regular season conference title before falling to Samford University in the SoCon semifinals.
Through the fall and early spring parts of the season, the team has an overall record of 36-52 in singles play and a 23-23 mark in doubles. The team has shown its strongest result in tournament play, posting a 34-36 record in singles and 23-16 in doubles. Head-to-head matchups have challenged the Bears, who are 2-16 in singles and 0-7 in doubles.
Individually, Hod'Abalo Isak Padio ‘26 has led the team in singles victories with a 9-6 overall record. Padio competed in the Davis Cup last fall, representing Togo as the country’s No. 1-ranked player. Masuda (7-5), Alex Aldaz ‘28 and Gasser ‘27 (both 5-6) have provided consistent contributions this season. In doubles, Aldaz and Prince Gandonou ‘26 paced the team with 7-6 overall records, while Cameron Douthit ‘28, Masuda, Padio and Nemanja Stefanovic ‘26 each finished 6-4.
Looking ahead, Mercer faces a demanding spring schedule that includes several high-profile nonconference tests and a full Southern Conference slate. The Bears will travel to face the University of Mississippi on Feb. 13 before returning home for matches against Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, Young Harris University and Georgia State University. The Bears will also host key SoCon opponents, including Furman University, the University of Chattanooga, Wofford College and The Citadel, all at home.
The Bears will conclude the regular season on April 11 against The Citadel before traveling to Chattanooga, Tenn., for the SoCon Tournament, which begins April 19.
