SENIOR DAY: Tulane Honors Men's Tennis' Tim Ruetzel
May 8, 2020 | Men's Tennis
EDITOR'S NOTE: Over the next few months, TulaneGreenWave.com will honor the 35 seniors that had their respective collegiate careers cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic through this SENIOR DAY series. We hope you the fans enjoy this series and remember the seniors from the 2020 graduating class.
A native of Munich, Germany, Tim Ruetzel joined the Tulane men's tennis program as a freshman during the fall of 2016. While helping the Green Wave reach three consecutive NCAA Tournaments from 2017-19, the program's first conference tournament title in the post-Katrina era in 2018 and the school's first appearance in the ITA National Team Indoor Championships in 2019, he racked up a combined 98 total wins, including 67 in singles and 31 in doubles. He was named American Athletic Conference Player of the Month in September 2018 and achieved a career-high national singles ranking of No. 125 in November 2018.
In the classroom, he was a three-time American Athletic Conference All-Academic Team honoree and earned ITA Academic All-America recognition as a junior in 2019.
Ruetzel’s final season was abbreviated just 11 matches into the spring season due to the pandemic.
Today, we honor Ruetzel in our SENIOR DAY web series.
Q AND A WITH TIM RUETZEL
What made you want to come to Tulane?
"I took an official visit, and it was extremely different with how close the team was compared to others. Everyone was really close, and it's still that way."
What is your favorite memory from your time at Tulane?
"Winning the conference championship my sophomore year. Being the last match on and everyone relying on me, it was just awesome. It was great to see everyone happy and pull together."
What's next?
"There are a lot of questions up in the air right now. I want to keep playing tennis, or I can stay in Germany. I could also return to the U.S., and get a job working in business."
Being the last match on and everyone relying on me, it was just awesome.-Tim Ruetzel
For the first time, we are taking the AAC title home to NOLA!! #RollWave ?? ?? pic.twitter.com/bJMGqozQgM
— Tulane Men's Tennis (@GreenWaveMTenn) April 22, 2018
TIM RUETZEL'S CAREER BIO
2019-20: Compiled a 15-12 overall singles record, including a 6-4 mark during the spring season…Ranked second on the team in total wins and posted a 3-0 record at the No. 4 spot in the lineup…Defeated 119th-ranked Jacob Fearnley at No. 8 TCU (3/8) in his final match of the season for his first-career win over a ranked opponent…Also collected wins over LSU’s Nick Watson (1/31) and Virginia Tech’s Matthis Ross (2/2) during the spring…Had a 3-9 overall doubles record, including a 1-2 mark at the No. 3 spot in the lineup in dual matches.
2018-19: Earned ITA All-Academic Team honors...Tabbed to the American Athletic Conference All-Academic Team...Named American Athletic Conference Player of the Month for September…Won the Crimson Draw in both the singles and doubles portions of the Alabama Invitational tournament in the fall…Finished with a 14-8 singles record, including an 11-5 mark during the fall campaign…Reached the No. 125 spot in the ITA national singles rankings at the end of the fall season.
2017-18: Tabbed to the American Athletic Conference All-Academic Team...Tallied a 23-12 overall singles record including a 16-6 mark in dual matches at the No. 5 and No. 6 positions in the lineup…Went 13-6 at the No. 6 position…Clinched Tulane’s first American Athletic Conference championship with a 6-3, 6-7(5), 7-5 triumph on court six against Sean Burnette of USF (4/22)…Won in straight sets in the Green Wave’s road victory at 19th-ranked California (1/28)…Did the same in the Wave’s 7-0 triumph over No. 21 Texas Tech (2/25)…Registered a 13-13 overall mark in doubles including an 8-9 ledger in dual matches between the No. 2 and No. 3 spots in the lineup.
2016-17: Tallied a 15-5 overall singles record ... Went 5-2 in dual matches, going 4-1 at the No. 6 position ... Recorded a 6-13 overall record in doubles with a 3-7 mark in dual play...Named to the 2016-17 American Athletic Conference All-Academic Team...Member of Tulane Athletics 3.0 Club for fall 2016 and spring 2017.
High School:
Attended Luitpold –Gymnasium in Munich … Ranked a top-10 junior in Germany … In 2015, was the German Indoor National Tournament Runner-up … Was the 2014 Bavarian champion.
Personal:
Born in Munich, Germany … Has a younger brother and an older sister … Grandfather, Karl Wilhelm Berges, was a German track and field national champion … Enjoys playing soccer and rooting on the German team … Favorite athlete is Roger Federer … Future career plans include playing pro tennis after college … Intends to major in Business.
RUETZEL'S CAREER SINGLES STATISTICS
| Year | Overall | Dual | Tour | Conf. | No. 1 | No. 2 | No. 3 | No. 4 | No. 5 | No. 6 |
| 2016-17 | 15-5 | 5-2 | 10-3 | 0-0 | - | - | - | - | 1-1 | 4-1 |
| 2017-18 | 23-12 | 16-6 | 7-6 | 3-1 | - | - | - | - | 3-0 | 13-6 |
| 2018-19 | 14-8 | 3-3 | 11-5 | 0-1 | - | - | - | 1-0 | 1-0 | 1-3 |
| 2019-20 | 15-12 | 6-4 | 9-8 | 0-0 | - | - | - | 3-0 | 2-4 | 1-0 |
| Total | 67-37 | 30-15 | 37-22 | 3-2 | - | - | - | 4-0 | 7-5 | 19-10 |
RUETZEL'S CAREER DOUBLES STATISTICS
| Year | Overall | Dual | Tour | Conf. | No. 1 | No. 2 | No. 3 |
| 2016-17 | 6-13 | 3-7 | 3-6 | 0-3 | - | 0-2 | 3-5 |
| 2017-18 | 13-13 | 8-9 | 5-4 | 3-0 | - | 1-1 | 7-8 |
| 2018-19 | 9-14 | 3-8 | 6-6 | 0-1 | 1-0 | 0-2 | 2-6 |
| 2019-20 | 3-9 | 1-2 | 2-7 | 0-0 | - | - | 1-2 |
| Total | 31-39 | 15-24 | 16-23 | 3-4 | 1-0 | 1-5 | 13-21 |
Upcoming Senior Day Schedule
May 10 – Senior Day on Meghan Doyle (Beach Volleyball)
May 12 – Senior Day on Corey Dauphine (Track and Field)
May 13 – Senior Day on Brinton Hoover (Sailing)
May 14 – Senior Day on Skyler Guillot (Track and Field)
May 15 – Senior Day on Tarin Mergener (Beach Volleyball)
May 16 – Senior Day on Robert Price (Baseball)
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