ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference released its 2026 Men's Tennis Preseason Poll and Preview on Thursday, and the University of Northwestern was forecast by the league's coaches as the No. 2 team in the North Division with 12 points. The University of Wisconsin-Superior, who has won the North the past four seasons, was chosen as the top team with 16 points and four first-place votes. Bethany Lutheran received the other first-place vote. Northwestern has finished runner-up behind the Yellowjackets in each of the past four seasons.

The full UMAC preseason poll and preview can be found here.

While the women's roster is experiencing major turnover in 2026, the UNW men return their entire lineup from last season. Carson Haack (Elk River, Minn./Elk River) enters his junior season as the Eagles' top player, having won the 2024 UMAC North Division Rookie of the Year award, in addition to a pair of First Team All-Conference nods in his two seasons in purple. The Elk River native went 3-1 in the conference in both singles and doubles matches in 2025 (9-15 overall in singles and 14-11 in doubles. Haack will be joined by senior Griffen Jarchow (Luverne, Minn./Luverne), who went 3-1 in UMAC singles last season and 2-1 in doubles (9-15 overall in singles and 11-13 in doubles). Jarchow, who won three UMAC Player of the Week awards last season, is a two-time First Team All-Conference selection and was a Second Team pick his freshman year.

In addition to the two mainstays at the top of Northwestern's lineup, its trio of talented sophomores return for a second year on campus. Caleb Swigart (Cottage Grove, Minn./Park) was named 2025 UMAC North Division Rookie of the Year, as well as Second Team All-Conference, after posting a 3-1 record in both singles and doubles matches in the conference (13-10 overall in singles and 9-13 in doubles). Sam Majerus (River Falls, Wis./River Falls) was also a second-teamer in his rookie season, going 2-1 in UMAC singles and 3-1 in doubles as the No. 3 player. Isaac Thomforde (Crookston, Minn./Crookston), typically playing in the No. 4 spot as a freshman, was named All-Conference Honorable Mention despite battling injuries during the conference slate. He did manage a 10-11 doubles record overall on the season.

Jacob Petrick (Omaha, Neb./Elkhorn North) figures to join the rotation as a freshman to start the season, joining Matt Swigart's group of veterans. Petrick was a Nebraska state champion in high school and a Second Team All-State selection. Swigart enters year 14 at the helm with 177 wins on the men's side, which is 110 more than second-place in program history. He and his squad will look to build off a 10-15 season (3-1 UMAC) last spring.

The Eagles will open the 2026 season with a triangular against Concordia-Wisconsin and UW-Stevens Point on Saturday, January 31st in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.