By Jacob Brown, Staff Writer
Newman University tennis players will be able to keep their scholarships until they graduate despite their program being discontinued, said Newman Athletic Director Kenyon Spears.
At the end of February, Newman announced its plans to end its tennis program, which includes both men’s and women’s teams, after 59 years. This year, the program includes nine men and five women players, who will finish out the season, Spears said.
The decision to cut the team came down to what was best for Newman, said Spears, who started as athletic director this fall. One of his directives was to evaluate the whole athletic department and determine which sports fit best into Newman’s future.
“Unfortunately, tennis did not align where we were looking to move forward,” he said.
Spears said that had a meeting with the tennis team to discuss the decision and that many players were surprised by the news.
He said that he sat down with the players and answered all the questions they had during the meeting, and he told them they could speak to him face-to-face if they had more questions or needed help making decisions about their next steps.
Newman announced in December that it would add a track and field team to its athletic roster, but Spears said the addition of that team had nothing to do with the discontinuation of tennis.
Track and field is its own project, he said.
“This gives us the opportunity to bring in new student athletes and their contributions to a new program,” he said, adding that the new team will also give cross country athletes the opportunity to compete year round.
Enrico Belardo, a senior tennis player in his third season at Newman, said he is not affected by the decision as much as his teammates are because he graduates in May.
“Most of them are looking for a new school, but they still have the chance to continue here on the same scholarship, which was a good deal Neman gave us,” he said.
Belardo said that he thought Newman handled the players fairly. Tennis was a big tradition at Newman, Belardo said, pointing to the legacy left by former coach Shella Auspurger, who retired after the 2023-2024 season.
Augspurger, who had been with the tennis program since the 2003-2004 season, where the team competed in the NAIA, was followed by Brady Matthews, who led the team for the 2024-2025 season, and Darren Snyder, who has been coaching the team this year.
“She did a lot for this school and for the whole athletic department,” Belardo said of Augspurger.
The Newman tennis team’s record since becoming a Division 2 school in 2008 has been 348-355.
Next up: the team will travel to Durant, Oklahoma, to face Southeastern Oklahoma State on Saturday. The final season of Newman tennis will conclude on April 26, where the team will face Nebraska Kearney.
PHOTO: Courtesy, Newman Athletics
