BARON TENNIS TEAMS UP WITH YMCA

Franciscan University of Steubenville and the Western Area YMCA of Pittsburgh announced that the two would enter into a partnership for the "Y" to host the Baron Tennis program for the 2016 season when its home courts at Belleview Park are unavailable due to weather.

Barons' head tennis coach, Jeremy Ellis, and Western Area YMCA Tennis Director, Mike Lucente, announced that the "Y" would host the Barons matches that are unable to be held in Steubenville due to inclement weather as well as all indoor practices for the 2016 season. "This is an exciting step for our program," Ellis said. "We've enjoyed a lot of success in our six seasons participating in NCAA Division III athletics. We hope this move will allow our program to become a force in DIII tennis."

The Barons have participated in the DIII NCAA Tournament five out of the last six years and are poised to compete for another AMCC Conference title this season which would send them back to the tournament for a fourth consecutive year. "We have never had the opportunity to begin the year with a solid practice schedule," Ellis said. "In past years, we've struggled to find indoor court time. It's usually not possible for us to use our home courts until April and even then the weather can be questionable. We are hoping this partnership with the 'Y' will allow us to get the guys some meaningful court time and help them prepare for the tough schedule we will face."

Baron captain, David Freytag, agreed, "We know this is a significant step for our program and our guys couldn't be more thankful that our coaches and Athletic Director, Chris Ledyard, see our team as something worth investing in."