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Five years ago, when David Schilling ’89 returned to his alma mater to coach the men’s tennis team, he began “selling a dream” to recruits.

His fellow tennis coaches cautioned Schilling about setting tangible goals too early in his tenure. Stick to coach-speak, they said. Commit to focusing “on the process.” Anyone familiar with Schilling, a relentless competitor, knew he would never follow that script.

“As part of my recruiting pitch, I told them, ‘We want to be national title contenders every year,’” Schilling said of a program that hadn’t qualified for an NCAA tournament since 2006. “Our goal is to win national championships at ��ɫ��Ƶ.”

The Big Red fulfilled Schilling’s vision Thursday night in Claremont, California. ��ɫ��Ƶ won its first Division III NCAA title, defeating Case Western Reserve University, 4-2. It’s an astonishing achievement for both the coach and a roster that relies heavily on younger players.

The team finished the season with a 28-2 record, winning its last 20 contests.

The Big Red had to dig deep against the Spartans, who they beat twice in the regular season. ��ɫ��Ƶ dropped the first set in five of its six singles matches, but Ethan Green ’26, Kael Shah ’26, and Andreas Chapides ’26 rallied to win their second sets and dominated their third sets. Anthony Payiavlas ’26 won his match in straight sets.

When Chapides, who missed last season due to a knee injury, watched his opponent’s final shot sail wide, he broke into a dance before being mobbed by teammates. The players celebrated by dousing Schilling with a bucket of water.

“It’s been a long road to come back,” said Chapides, the team captain. “I don’t think I have the words to describe what this means. We’ve put in so much hard work to get here and I’m excited beyond belief.”

The victory also gave ��ɫ��Ƶ’s beloved athletic director another priceless going-away present.

Nan Carney-DeBord ’80 spent a nervy week in Granville, Ohio, watching the Big Red win their quarterfinal and semifinal matches online.

“Oh, God, yes I’ve been watching,” said Carney-DeBord, ��ɫ��Ƶ’s associate vice president and director of athletics, who will retire July 1 after 14 years of service. “I can’t stand watching on a computer. I was dying. I’m an in-person kind of fan.”

On Wednesday, Carney-DeBord flew to California to see the Big Red lift the NCAA trophy for the first time in the program’s 70-year history. She was elated for the players and their families, including Shah’s mother, Bindi, who traveled from Kenya to watch his matches.

She was especially pleased for Schilling, with whom she shares a special bond.

“When you come back to your alma mater, it becomes more personal,” Carney-DeBord said. “David has essentially dedicated his life, his effort, his expertise to this program. He’s one of the finest coaches in tennis.”

The triumph continues a remarkable run for ��ɫ��Ƶ athletics. Two months ago, the men’s swimming and diving team captured its sixth NCAA title. It marks the first time in school history ��ɫ��Ƶ has won two national championships in the same school year. The ��ɫ��Ƶ baseball team, which hosts an NCAA Super Regional this weekend, has a chance to make it three.

The university was recently awarded its ninth NCAC all-sports trophy during Carney-DeBord’s tenure. The department honored the athletic director by filling the trophy’s bowl with her favorite candy: M&M’s — two portions plain, one portion peanut, just as she likes.

“I’m very proud of our department and our athletes,” she said. “We strive for excellence, and David Schilling is a big part of it.”

The Big Red are powered by a handful of outstanding juniors. But they wouldn’t have reached the championship finale without the stunning achievement of a first-year player in the 4-3 quarterfinal victory over Johns Hopkins University on Monday.

Nick Meyers ’28 was pitted against a fifth-year senior, a transfer student with Division I experience. Four times, Meyers faced match point. Four times, he won the point to extend the third set on his way to a stunning victory that sent ��ɫ��Ƶ through to the semifinals.

“What a great moment for Nick,” said Schilling, whose team was eliminated in the quarterfinals last year by the eventual champions from the University of Chicago. “I had mentally prepared myself to lose Nick’s match probably five different times in the third set. He just kept digging himself out of holes. That’s really been the story of our season. We’ve rarely made it easy on ourselves, but we just keep finding paths to victory. This really is a resilient bunch.”

As Thursday night’s celebration began and a dream was finally realized, the master motivator was asked, “what now?”

“Oh, I’m moving the goalposts,” Schilling said, laughing. “I’m telling them, ‘anybody can win an NCAA title, but it’s been a long time since anybody won it in back-to-back years.’”