The D3 Program
After the transition to Division 3, the tennis program no longer gave scholarships to players and no longer had the top players in the world. The Trinity tennis program was no longer the powerhouse that it once was, but it still became a flourishing program. The team has made the NCAA playoffs every year since 1993 and has 23 SCAC championships since 1992. The program has made a home in the Division 3 format with an emphasis on academics first. The team now has many fans and alumni that come back and support the team every year. The support is shown in the many events that are held for matches at Trinity University where the fans and alumni celebrate the program and watch the matches. The program is no longer the Division 1 program that it used to be, but the team has made itself a powerhouse within Division 3.
When coach Newman took over the role of head coach of the team, he made it a goal to turn the program around to how it was when he was a player. When Newman started coaching the team, there were mostly foreign players that lacked chemistry. The quality of play was also not as strong as it was when Newman was a player. When the division switch was made it was even more difficult to get talented players to play for the team. Despite starting in a hole, Butch Newman was able to turn the program around and lead the Tigers to a national championship.
In my interview with Butch Newman he told me that he enjoyed his years with the D3 program far more than the D1 program. Even after playing in the greatest years of Trinity tennis, Newman loved the Division 3 team the most. Newman also told me his favorite moment in all of his time with Trinity tennis was when both the men’s and women’s teams won the national championship in 2000. Both teams were competing at the same time in different locations and Newman decided to go watch the women’s team and sent his assistant coach with the men’s team. When he was at the women’s match he got a call from the assistant coach that the men’s team had won. Newman was excited for his team, but the women were currently struggling in their match. Coach Newman told the women that the men won and the women’s team immediately started turning it around and started winning. Even after all the years playing for the great Division 1 program and coaching Division 1 players, Newman’s favorite tennis moment was with the Division 3 team.