Treis, UW-Whitewater Men's Tennis Headed to NCAA Tournament

2016 May 12

Michael Treis, a native of Brookfield, WI, and graduate of Brookfield Central High School, is a member of the No. 16 University of Wisconsin-Whitewater men's tennis team, which begins its 10th consecutive appearance in the NCAA Division III Team Tournament this Saturday.

The Warhawks (22-6 overall) take on on Rose-Hulman (Ind.) at 3 p.m. in a second round contest at Tao Tennis Center on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis.

Treis is a senior at UW-Whitewater and is majoring in communication.

The Warhawks earned a Pool "B" at-large bid into the 43-team field. With a win against Rose-Hulman, the team will face sixth-ranked Washington-St. Louis, Grinnell (Iowa) or Edgewood. Grinnell and Edgewood face off Friday at 3 p.m. in a first-round contest for the chance to take on Washington-St. Louis in the second round.

UW-Whitewater is ranked fourth in the Central Region by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, while Rose-Hulman is slotted 12th in the region. The two teams have only faced each other once - the Warhawks came away with a victory on March 30, 1983.

The Engineers (20-8) posted their second straight Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament title to claim their second-ever bid to the NCAA Tournament.

The Warhawks faced all three of their potential third-round opponents during the regular season. The team posted an 8-1 triumph over Grinnell on Feb. 20, and was a 9-0 winner over Edgewood on April 3.

UW-Whitewater took Washington-St. Louis down to the wire on April 15, but was outlasted in a 5-4 setback.

Seniors Jake Humphreys (Kenosha, Wis./Tremper) and Michael Treis (Brookfield, Wis./Central) top the singles and doubles lineups for the Warhawks.

Humphreys, now a three-time NCAA Individual Tournament singles qualifier, is currently ranked eighth in the Central Region by the ITA. He is 12-10 for the year competing exclusively at the No. 1 position, and a majority of his losses have come against scholarship competition or fellow NCAA individual qualifiers.

Treis is 14-10 in singles play competing at both the Nos. 1 and 2 positions. He is ranked 18th in the region by the ITA.

Humphreys and Treis are 18-8 as a doubles pair, and are ranked sixth in the region by the ITA. The duo won the USTA/ITA Midwest Regional doubles title in October and placed seventh at the National Small College Championships later that month.

Junior Rithwik Rajshekhar Raman (Chennai, Tamil Nadu-India/SAIDS British Education) competes primarily at the No. 3 singles position. He is 17-13 in singles entering postseason play.

Raman and senior Scott Butler (Eagan, Minn./Eagan) typically pair up at the No. 2 doubles slot. The two have combined for a 10-6 record this season.

Sophomore Grant Thompson (Hawthorn Woods, Ill./Lake Zurich) is also a staple in both the doubles and singles lineups. He is 13-9 in singles, mostly at the fourth spot, and 19-7 in doubles, primarily at the third position.

Thompson has paired with senior Michael Schnarr (Madison, Wis./Memorial) for a 12-4 mark.

Singles specialists include sophomore Zane Navratil (Racine, Wis./The Prairie School) and senior Matt Bisbee (Chicago, Ill./Marist), who compete at the Nos. 5 and 6 spots, respectively. Navratil leads the team in singles wins with a 22-6 record, while Bisbee ranks second with a 20-11 mark.

UW-Whitewater has reached at least the second round in nine of its 10 tournament appearances, including this season due to its first-round bye. The team reached the third round in 2011 and seeks its first-ever berth into the NCAA Team Championship, which takes place May 23-25 in Kalamazoo, Mich.