Tennis Recruiting Network Release

BABSON PARK, Mass.—For the second year in a row, the Babson College men's tennis recruiting class has been ranked eighth in Division III by the Tennis Recruiting Network (TRN) in an announcement made last week. 

Head coach and director of tennis Michael Kopelman, who just completed his eighth season at Babson and was selected as the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Division III Coach of the Year, has now enrolled eight straight top-25 classes going back to 2019. The Beavers' incoming class is also ranked among the top 10 nationally for the third time in the last four seasons. 

Joining Kopelman and assistant coach Kartik Erodula's squad in the fall will be a four-man class that includes Babson's first five-star player and three athletes that have been ranked among the top 180 by TRN over the last six months. All four players have been ranked among the top 270 since January 1 and have a Universal Tennis Rating (UTR) of better than 10.30. 

Lucas Velasco of Miami, Fla., who is ranked 67th by TRN and boasts an 11.57 UTR, becomes the Beavers' first five-star recruit under Kopelman, while four-star Saje Vijay Menon of Mineola, N.Y., has been ranked as high as 137th by TRN and has a 10.90 UTR. Andre Ziskind of Hilton Head, S.C., also has a 10.90 UTR in addition to being ranked as high as 179th by TRN, and Jakarta, Indonesia, native Eric Matthew Gunawan has a 10.32 UTR. 

"This class is a great step forward for our program and we're excited to see them make an immediate impact," commented Kopelman. "These young men reflect our vision for Babson tennis: high-level competitors driven to succeed both on the court and in the classroom."

TRN enlists the help of a number of Division III enthusiasts, coaches and insiders to aid in the rankings. In addition the Star Rating, they also display the highest TRN, UTR, WTN and International Tennis Federation (ITF) junior rankings for each player going back to January 1, 2026. 

The Beavers are one of two New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) programs in the top-25 along with second-ranked MIT. In all there, are nine teams from New England in the top 25. 

Babson is coming off a terrific 2025-26 campaign that included capturing its second consecutive NEWMAC regular season and tournament championships before advancing to its second straight NCAA Tournament regional final. The Beavers ended the year ranked 12th in the final ITA poll with an overall record of 19-5.