Men's Tennis Names Captains for 2026-27 Season

MALIBU, Calif. — The nationally recognized Pepperdine men's tennis program has named Edward Winter and Lasse Poertner team captains for the 2026-27 season, as announced today by Director of Tennis Adam Schaechterle.

"I'm super proud to be leading such an elite group of guys," said Poertner. "The energy and commitment makes this team special. Big things ahead for this group."

"I'm extremely honored to be selected as a captain," stated Winter. "I'm excited to work closely with Latcho and continue to instill our team culture and values. We have an awesome group of players and coaches, and I welcome the opportunity to serve them."

Winter, the older brother of Hugh Winter, enters his senior campaign for the Waves. He's been stellar his entire collegiate career, beginning with an ITA Regional Rookie of the Year and a WCC Freshman of the Year award, culminating in a first team all-WCC honor. As a sophomore, he finished 32nd in the ITA singles rankings and 79th in the ITA doubles rankings alongside Hugh while garnering another first team All-WCC award. Off the court, Edward has earned a number of academic achievements, including 2025 WCC All-Academic honorable mention, 2026 conference all-academic, 2024 WCC Commissioner's honor roll (bronze status), 2025 WCC Commissioner's honor roll (bronze status), and 2026 WCC Commissioner's honor roll (silver status).

Our 2026-2027 captains 🫡🌊 #makewaves | @PepperdineWaves https://t.co/vIss2Vy9Ta
— Pepperdine Men's Tennis (@PepperdineMTEN) October 8, 2026

"Edward has grown as a player and person every year at Pepperdine," commented Schaechterle. "He has always led with his work ethic and discipline, but this fall E-Dub is finding a stronger voice and confidently casting a vision of what this group can achieve."

Poertner's name can be found all over the record book as he begins his junior season. The Kirchheim unter Teck, Germany native finished last season ranked no. 116 in ITA singles. After his freshman campaign ended in 2025, he was named second team All-WCC and an ITA Scholar-Athlete before improving to first team All-WCC last season in addition to second team All-WCC Doubles alongside Aleksa Pisaric. Poertner also earned WCC Commissioner's Honor Roll (gold status) in March 2026. Last season, he went 12-9 in singles action, playing all his matches either on the second (7-8 record) or third (5-1 record) flight.

"Lasse is the heartbeat of how we compete as a team," continued the ninth-year head coach. "He loves the pressure moments and the intensity of college tennis. Latch's strengths as a leader compliment E-Dub's, and those two will lead us well."

Pepperdine's fall slate continues this weekend (Fri. Oct. 9 through Sunday the 11th) with a trip north to Santa Barbara, facing UC Santa Barbara at the UCSB Invite.

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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To stay up-to-date on the latest Pepperdine men's tennis news, follow the Waves on social media: @PepperdineMTEN.

Players Mentioned

Aleksa Pisaric

Lasse Poertner

Edward Winter

Hugh Winter

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