It's impossible to know how things would have turned out, but there's no denying the Hillsdale College men's tennis team was playing like a G-MAC title contender when the Covid-19 pandemic brought the 2019-20 season to an abrupt and premature close.
Many of the players who made that start possible will return for the Chargers in 2020-21, looking to finish what they started in 2019-20, and they'll be getting a few reinforcements to aid in their quest.
Hillsdale College is bringing in three freshmen in its 2020-21 men's tennis class: Sean Barstow (Folsom, CA/Folsom), Brennan Cimpeanu (Troy, MI/Troy) and Daniel Gilbert (Fort Wayne, IN/Homestead).
Barstow was a standout for two years at Folsom High, taking second place in the Sierra Foothill League for singles as a freshman, and winning the league and placing second in the sectional in singles as a sophomore, finishing his high school career with a 32-5 record before turning his focus to more competitive play on the USTA junior circuit.
Currently ranked 12th in the competitive Northern California circuit for singles and third for doubles, Barstow posted a 25-17 record against tough competition for the 2019 spring season, and is currently 280-214 overall in USTA juniors matches.
He's also an excellent student, posting a 4.08 GPA in high school and participating in multiple service clubs to give back to the community, including Key Club, Interact, UNICEF, and the California Scholarship Foundation.
Cimpeanu, meanwhile, is the second member of his family to play tennis at Hillsdale College, joining his sister, Hannah, who's currently a junior on the women's team.
The Troy senior was a standout for the Colts throughout his high school career, winning a MHSAA Division I state championship at No. 2 singles in 2017 to help his team take second, its best finish ever in state tournament history, and reaching the state semifinals as an individual in 2016 and 2019.
Cimpeanu was a team captain in both 2018 and 2019, was named Troy's Colt of the Year in 2019, and finished high school with a career record of 86-14.
As a USTA junior, Cimpeanu was ranked as high as fifth in the Midwest, with several top three finishes in national-level tournaments and a career record of 303-191 in USTA matches.
As a student, Cimpeanu won the Troy Academic Excellence Award, the Troy Scholar-Athlete Award and the Congressional Excellence Award, while serving in student government and as a member of the Peer Mediation group.
Gilbert comes to Hillsdale College fresh off a standout career for a Homestead team that was ranked in the top three in the state of Indiana each of the last two seasons, and which was eliminated in the postseason by the eventual state champion both years.
The Fort Wayne native was first-team all-state and a member of the Indiana All-Star team as a senior playing No. 1 singles for Homestead, and earned all-state honors three straight years in high school with a record of 79-9 on the varsity.
Playing on the USTA junior circuit, Gilbert is ranked 59th in the Midwest with a 41-34 record at the 18U level.
As a student at Homestead, Gilbert was a member of the National Honor Society, made the honor roll or distinguished honor roll in every semester of high school with special awards in German and Physical Education, and assists in the Adaptive Tennis Class at the YMCA for youths with disabilities in his spare time.
Photos: Courtesy; from left, Sean Barstow, Brennan Cimpeanu, and Daniel Gilbert
