Having not lost any seniors to graduation, the 2009-10 men’s tennis team will feature a similar lineup to that which compiled a 16-11 record and finished third in the final Conference USA standings.

But for head coach Carl Neufeld, the most important factor heading into this season may be as simple as this – each player is a year older.

Entering his 17th year at the helm of SMU men’s tennis, Neufeld employs a five-year plan which he uses to track and improve the growth of his players.

“I try to red-shirt most freshmen,” he said, “and emphasize their development in three ways – technically, physically and mentally.”

After raising their own personal bar, Neufeld said, players must then learn to change. Once they begin to accept changes and work on improving their game, it is not the final score that matters most to the head coach.

“Results can be a false positive,” Neufeld said. “I’m more interested in these guys becoming their personal best. The goal is that each thing we do every day is best for that fifth year. … The amazing part is the process.”

And players don’t have to look back to far to see why coach Neufeld calls his plan “very productive.”

Just last season, sophomores Adham el-Effendi and Darren Walsh – who both redshirted their freshman year – rose to No.32 in the nation for doubles competition. The pair finished with a record of 15-3, including a perfect 12-0 in the number two doubles spot.

“My doubles improved most last year, so I’m going to keep going with that,” el-Effendi said. “I expect to really improve on my singles this year.”

The Mustangs put together a 12-4 home record but dropped seven matches by two points or less, something not lost on coach Neufeld or his players.

“We lost a lot of close matches last year,” el-Effendi said. “We had some injuries and I don’t think it was until late in the season that we had everybody playing.”

“I think we had one of our best seasons,” Neufeld said, “and we were playing our best tennis at the end of the year. Given the fact that we played a lot of the top teams in the country very close last year, I’m very excited about the prospects for this year.”