SAN BRUNO, Calif. — Pepperdine men's tennis has been selected No. 2 in the preseason West Coast Conference (WCC) poll, announced today by the conference. In addition, four Waves were named to the six-member All-WCC Preseason Team.

Senior Maxi Homberg, junior Edward Winter, sophomore Lasse Poertner and freshman Gustavo Ribeiro de Almeida were each named to the All-WCC Preseason Team, with Pepperdine and preseason No. 1 San Diego combining for all six members of the team.

Maxi Homberg, Senior (Freising, Germany)
Homberg returns following a strong 2024-25 campaign which saw earn All-WCC First Team recognition in singles and second team honors in doubles, after being an ITA All-American in singles in the fall. Homberg won the ITA Sectionals Singles title en route to the NCAA berth. Totaling a 15-14 overall mark on the season, he also earned a WCC Singles Player of the Week and Doubles Team of the Week during the season. He saw a career-high ITA ranking of No. 36 this past season, while earning a spot on the WCC All-Academic Team.

Lasse Poertner, Sophomore (Kirchheim unter Teck, Germany)
Poertner earns a spot on the All-WCC Preseason Team following a standout debut season with the Waves in 2024-25, earning All-WCC Second Team recognition in singles. Poertner posted a team-best 16-6 mark in singles and 17-5 doubles record during the dual match season. He played a key role in the Waves' postseason run, as the only player to win multiple matches in the WCC Tournament while earning a win in the first round of the NCAA Tournament over Alabama. Poertner was tabbed at No. 53 in the most recent ITA doubles rankings alongside Aleksa Pisaric.

Gustavo Ribeiro de Almeida, Freshman (Guarapuava, Brazil)
Ribeiro de Almeida is the lone freshman to crack the All-WCC Preseason Team. Competing in three events in the fall for the Waves, he recorded a 6-3 singles record in his first collegiate action. His top ITF Junior ranking was as high as No. 41 as he won four singles and five doubles titles on the junior circuit, while competing in three of the four junior grand slams in 2024. Ribeiro de Almeida is currently ranked No. 51 in the ITA doubles rankings alongside David Fix.

Edward Winter, Junior (Adelaide, Australia)
Winter enters his junior campaign having been named to the All-WCC First Team in singles in each of his first two campaigns with the Waves. Also earning First Team Doubles honors in 2025 and Second Team Doubles recognition in 2024, Winter burst onto the scene as the 2024 WCC Freshman of the Year and 2024 ITA Southwest Region Rookie of the Year. Coming off 2025 spring season which saw him record a 14-8 singles record at the No. 1 position throughout the campaign. He enters the season tabbed at No. 88 in the most recent ITA singles rankings, having a career-high ranking of No. 19.

The Waves are coming off a 2025 campaign which saw a 17-11 overall mark while advancing into the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in five years.

Pepperdine was slated at No. 23 in the preseason ITA rankings released earlier this week, as the Waves will kick off the spring campaign next Sunday (Jan. 18) with a home match against Florida Atlantic University at noon.

2026 Men's Tennis Preseason Poll
1. San Diego - 48 points (6)
2. Pepperdine - 44 (2)
3. Santa Clara - 37
4. LMU - 29
T-5. Pacific -20
T-5. Portland - 20
7. Gonzaga - 17
8. Saint Mary's - 9

2026 Men's Tennis Preseason Team
Gustavo Ribeiro de Almeida, Pepperdine
Maxi Homberg, Pepperdine
Stian Klaassen, San Diego
Lasse Poertner, Pepperdine
Oliver Tarvet, San Diego
Edward Winter, Pepperdine

ABOUT PEPPERDINE MEN'S TENNIS
Pepperdine men's tennis has a longstanding tradition of success, highlighted by an NCAA Championship in 2006 which came 54 years after its first NAIA Championship in 1952. Robbie Weiss recorded the program's first NCAA singles championship in 1988 after the program saw doubles national championships in 1984 and 1985. 44-time WCC Champions, Pepperdine has reached 40 NCAA Tournaments and six NCAA Regionals in its history with 53 total All-Americans.

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