The St. John’s Men’s Tennis team has known nothing but success in the past seven seasons.
Under Head Coach Dillon Pottish, the team has made five straight Big East title matches, earning champion honors twice in that run. They most recently won the final in 2023 against Butler University and clinched an appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
But last season, the team’s tournament hopes were dashed by DePaul University in the Big East final. A 4-2 loss ended the team’s 21-5 season short of an NCAA Tournament berth, making them the runner-ups in the conference.
This loss sent Pottish back to the drawing board while enlisting outside help from an experienced transfer pickup.
Junior Max Amling was poached from Lamar University and immediately made his presence known within the team, earning an impressive honor before even seeing the court.
Along with junior Adam Groves and senior Ignacio Vinas, Amling was named a captain for the 2024-2025 season. Amling, Groves and Vinas are the first players Pottish has given the title of captain to in his career.
“It’s something special and I know you have to be a leader for the rest of the team,” Amling told The Torch. “You just have to do everything right and show your teammates how it’s done.”
In his two prior seasons at Lamar, Amling was a consistently celebrated player. Among his many accolades collected, he received the Southland Conference Player of the Year distinction in 2023.
But awards mean little in his pursuit of the main prize: winning.
“I was following [St. John’s] a little bit last year, it was crazy seeing them every time in the final,” he said regarding the Red Storm’s past success. “We want to be in the final again and win this year.”
When discussing what drove him to Queens, he claimed that the level of competition sat high on his list of priorities.
“St. John’s is a bigger school than my last one and tennis-wise, I think the level is higher as well,” he said.
Moving into the spotlight that comes with playing in New York City and the Big East is not a problem for Amling either, but more of an invitation.
“Having the chance to play in New York and having the chance to win the conference was another factor,” he said when citing more reasons behind his decision.
When looking forward to his success in his first season in Queens, Amling plainly stated his intentions: “I just want to win as many games for the team as possible.”
But for any potential accolades or recognition, he set a lofty goal for himself: “I would like to be player of the year, of course, anyone would want that.”
Amling and the Johnnies are already off to a hot start in this young season. With convincing wins over Binghamton University and Niagara University in their first two matches, St. John’s is continuing their solid play this season.
In Amling’s first appearance against Binghamton, he lost a doubles match 6-3 with sophomore partner Armando Sotelo. He then had a bounce-back performance in his first singles match, winning 6-3 in both sets to secure his first victory in a St. John’s uniform.
