FILE — The San Francisco Dons bench at halftime of the men’s college basketball game between the BYU Cougars and the San Francisco Dons at on Jan. 25, 2020, at the War Memorial Gymnasium in San Francisco.
With less than a month left in their seasons, the University of San Francisco told its men’s and women’s tennis programs that this season will be the last for each program.
USF’s athletic director Larry Williams and vice president of business and finance Charlie Cross sent an emailed statement to the school’s faculty, staff and students Friday morning, announcing that both Dons tennis programs will “be discontinued” at the end of the 2023-24 season.
The university’s announcement came with several explanations for why the programs are ending, with money issues being the main one. Even though the programs only comprise 16 players and four coaches combined, the school says they cost “in excess of $1 million” annually.
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The university said it is looking to cut costs in the face of low enrollment numbers.
“At a time when USF is taking steps to become more efficient and implement cost savings across campus due to enrollment shortfalls, collegiate Athletics is experiencing unprecedented change on a national level,” Williams said in the school’s release. “Among these changes are the significantly expanded support services required for NCAA Division I competition.  Higher education institutions of all sizes must adapt in order to provide the best experience for all their student-athletes.”
USF said it has “no plans at the time” to cut other sports and will honor the scholarships for each of its 16 players if they choose to remain at the school, though the players could also enter the transfer portal and look to continue playing tennis elsewhere. The school said it will work with the coaches to help determine the next steps of their career.
“Personally, I am very sorry that our players and coaches received this news today,” Williams said in the release. “They did not expect their USF careers to be shortened in this way. We are doing everything we can to assist them as they chart their next steps and plan for their futures.”
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The announcement came just three weeks before the West Coast Conference championships in San Diego (April 25-27) and leaves just one home tennis weekend for each program before then. The women host Gonzaga on April 19 and Loyola Marymount on April 21, with both matches at the Goldman Tennis Center in Golden Gate Park. The men face Saint Mary’s on April 20 at the California Tennis Club.
As of Monday, the men’s tennis team is 6-11 on the season and 0-5 in conference play, while the women’s team is 3-11 overall and 0-3 in WCC action. The WCC Tournament only invites the top six schools in the standings, meaning each program could see their final weekend in San Francisco be their final weekend, period.
The men’s tennis program won one of USF’s 10 national championships, capturing the NCAA title in 1949.
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