The Ithaca College men’s tennis team does not have a Liberty League Championship playoff win on its program resume, but is aiming for the title with a second year head coach and a hefty and balanced roster after compiling a 6-10 record in 2024-25.
This year, the Bombers have 13 players, which includes a strong balance of experience with six upperclassmen and youthfulness with seven underclassmen, compared to eight total players on the entire roster in 2024-25. The Bombers have strength in their depth, something they struggled with in the past.
The Bombers already got chances in the 2025-26 season to show what they are capable of. In the fall season, usually a time for development and team bonding, the Bombers defeated Division II’s Daemen University in a shutout 7-0 win Oct. 11 at the Ben Wheeler Tennis Courts. Junior Gijs Fidler, sophomore Ivan Kisic and first-year player Samuel Lopez-Cardenas won the doubles and the singles competition and head coach Tom Rishcoff predicts they will make a profound impact on the season.
Kisic, the two-time Liberty League Men’s Tennis Singles Performer of the Week and second team All-Liberty League, made waves coming off the fall slate, placing second at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Northeast Regionals in October 2025 and earning a spot in the ITA Cup. Kisic’s 7-0 hot run in the final matches of the 2024-25 season fueled him to a 12-4 singles record. Kisic said he believes the tennis rankings do not reflect the power of the Bombers and what potential they have to show, especially as a team that has never won a Liberty League playoff game.
“I want our team to be top 50 nationally ranked for Division III,” Kisic said. “We are outside the top 50. We’re in the top 60, but this year, I do feel like we have … players capable of being in that leaderboard.”
Rishcoff transitioned to solely coaching the men’s team after spending the 2023-24 season, his first at IC, as both acting head coaches for the men’s and women’s teams. Rishcoff brought the Bombers to their first Liberty League playoff appearance in five years. This season, Rishcoff has bigger ambitions and expectations for his team.
“I think the guys are really hungry to kind of prove themselves a little bit,” Rishcoff said. “I think we have a different team this year, which is exciting to see. I think we have a lot to prove, and the guys are excited to go out there and do it.”
Rishcoff said the team’s strength in numbers encourages healthy intrasquad competition and serves as a strong motivator for his players to play for one another.
“I think the combination between some younger talent infused [with experience] … will give us a little bit more of a boost when it comes to that time [of the playoff season],” Rishcoff said.
This year, the team is putting extra emphasis on conditioning and strength to improve team availability and lower numbers of injuries that keep players off the court. Rishcoff said he has seen the most energy in the weight room and consistent practices from the team this season compared to past years.
“I was preaching … just getting in the weight room a little bit more often, and also being in there consistently, not just in season,” Rishcoff said. “The guys are staying fit all throughout the year, not just when we’re in competition seasons, which helps us with, obviously, not overloading your body and your body being used to a certain workload.”
Kisic also felt mutually about his coach’s effort to create a healthier and stronger unit.
“Coach is pretty on top of us for going to the [trainer] if we have an injury,” Kisic said. “He’s very detailed with the little things, and he’s a great coach. He’s very disciplined with us, and he also has high hopes for his team.”
Fidler, a captain of the team, said the “intensity” in practice is a theme the team is focusing on in the season preparations.
“We’re working harder in practice, competing a lot in practice,” Fidler said. “We’re doing a lot of match play in the weight room and we’re going pretty hard in [there]. … Everyone’s going 110% effort, the energy at practice should hopefully translate over [to the matches].”
Rishcoff has scheduled other difficult match-ups against top teams, like No. 20 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on April 19 and No. 27 New York University on March 22. The Bombers will face many familiar faces on their road to the championship, like RIT, who they fell to in the playoffs. Rishcoff said he believes the team’s cohesiveness will help them push through the difficult and close battles.
“I think we’re closer and more motivated than we have been in the past as a team,” Rishcoff said. “I think that is definitely in these bigger moments in these bigger matches, I think the guys are a little bit more able to come together, and I think that’s going to help us when it comes to these tight matches.”
Kisic said his fellow teammates compliment him well and that he has high hopes for the team as a whole.
“[We’re] keeping each other accountable and everyone plays an important position on the team,” Kisic said. “I guess last year we had a couple close matches with Rochester Institute of Technology and Hobart College, but this year we have a stronger team with stronger recruits, and our team is looking very promising.”
The Bombers opened their spring season Feb. 13, and have compiled a 3-1 record so far. They will next face Bloomsburg University on March 6 on the Ben Wheeler Tennis Courts.
