When Badgers head coach Greg Van Emburgh started pursing the talented recruit Moritz Baumann two and a half years ago, the young German was not at all familiar with the Badger tennis program. But now, the southpaw from Inzlingen, Germany, is stealing the show with a spotless record this spring, and Wisconsin is making room for yet another rising German star in freshman Patrick Pohlmann.
""I didn't even know where Wisconsin is, first of all,"" Baumann explained about his first contact with UW-Madison's tennis program. ""I was at one of my friends' place and just got a phone call from coach Van Emburgh, and I didn't even know how he got my cell-phone number.""
After getting in touch with Van Emburgh, among others, Baumann scheduled a recruitment trip to the United States and selected Madison to launch his college career.
This season, Baumann maintains a pristine record. Ranked No. 31 nationally, Baumann has torn through the season, indiscriminately taking down opponents to remain undefeated in his first 18 matches of the season and collecting four Big Ten Player of the Week awards this spring.
In doubles, he and sophomore Marek Michalicka are 14-2 and ranked No. 15, but before donning the cardinal and white, Baumann ranked in the top 20 in Germany in the under-16 and under-18 divisions. He collected titles winning the ITF Tournament in Leuggern, Switzerland, in 2004 and the Baden Junior Championships in 2003.
Despite language barriers in class, a relentless Baumann did not show signs of struggle in his game, climbing to No. 96 nationally in his premiere 2007 season and becoming only the second UW freshman to be named to the All-Big Ten team.
Two years later, lightning struck again for the Badgers when the squad was fortunate enough to acquire Pohlmann through the efforts of Van Emburgh and the support of Baumann, who provided a vital source of support for the prospective new Badger.
Pohlmann already knew Baumann from tournaments in Europe but had not spoken to him much before investigating the Badgers' tennis program.
""I met him two years ago at one tournament at futures, and I actually didn't speak a lot with him,"" Pohlmann said in rapidly improving English. ""But when I spoke with the coach here, I always contacted Moritz just to get more impressions about the university, about coach, about the team.""
Hailing from Cologne, Pohlmann was ranked in the top 100 in German men's rankings and peaked in the top 15 of the under-18 division before deciding to move his game to the hardcourts of the NCAA this spring. For the Badgers, Pohlmann opened his collegiate career with a 4-0 Big Ten record and has gone 10-2 overall, hungrily pursing the same freshman success and ranking his compatriot earned two years ago. Fortunately for him, however, he has benefited from the help of Baumann, who was in his situation two and a half years ago.
""Here he was really nice to me, too,"" Patrick said about reuniting with Baumann at Wisconsin. ""The first couple of weeks I felt bad about the weather, I complained a lot and he just tried to talk to me a lot.""
With the assistance of both players, the UW men's tennis team has enjoyed a great season in its own right. Currently 2-2 in the Big Ten and 13-5 overall, the No. 24 Badgers have had a year for the books, cracking the top 20 for the first time in over 30 years and ending the team's 18-match slump against Notre Dame with two victories over the Irish in the past month.
Although their coach differentiates Pohlmann's playful exuberance from Baumann's reserved cool, both players boast similarly physical and devastatingly effective games bred on the clay courts of Germany.
""They're both really athletic and move really well and make adjustments,"" Van Emburgh said. ""With Moritz, he's got a huge serve similar to Patrick and really good solid ground strokes, and I think both of them aren't really afraid to come in to the net, which is going to definitely help indoors.""
According to Baumann, making the switch between surfaces required certain modifications to compensate for the higher bounce and fast-paced intensity of American hardcourts, but each player has found a way to continue to impose his unique game in the NCAA.
""[Patrick]'s definitely really intense. A very firey player, plays with a lot of passion. A lot of emotion,"" said junior Luke Rassow-Kantor, one of the Badgers often paired with Pohlmann for doubles play.
Michalicka describes Baumann similarly, adding, ""He doesn't put any pressure on me. When I miss a ball, he always says, ‘Yeah, it's alright,' but when we need to win the point, he can come to me and just [say], ‘Pump it up.'""
Regardless of the circumstances that brought the two talented young Germans to Madison, both show signs of tremendous growth and potential, Van Emburgh said. Baumann, who has jumped from a pre-season rank of No. 117 to No. 31 in his fifth semester at UW, has grown into a unique leadership role on the team.
""Moritz has really just developed into a great young man and obviously our team captain and a leader,"" Van Emburgh said. ""It's not easy for a shy, international player to really embrace that, especially when English is his second language, but he's really stepped up this year, and obviously you can see the results.""
As for as the young and untested Pohlmann, Van Emburgh is also pleased with his progress and commitment to the program.
""He's making his adjustments and adjusting to college tennis and college life and going to school and also competing at a top Division I school and really one of the top programs. He's really kind of just jumped in full force and hasn't looked back, I don't think,"" Van Emburgh said.
Although it's likely that similar things lie on the horizon for Pohlmann as his illustrious predecessor, the vivacious freshman is likely to do it with his own flair.
""The things we really love about these two guys, not only are they great guys, but they're really competitive, and obviously, they're talented tennis players,"" Van Emburgh said. ""When I'm recruiting tennis players, I really look for how competitive they are on the court, and they both fit that mold.""
Baumann and Pohlmann will join the rest of the Badgers this weekend as the team travels to challenge Big Ten opponents Northwestern and Purdue Saturday and Sunday.
