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Michael Mertz
On & Off-Court Star
Steve Stein | Contributing Writer
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46 October 27 • 2016
ichael Mertz had a spectacu-
lar four years on the tennis
court, in the classroom and
in the community at Adrian College
before he graduated this spring.
The North Farmington High School
product’s 75 career singles wins and 66
career doubles wins are the most in the
history of the Adrian men’s tennis team.
He was 20-3 at No. 2 singles and
19-4 at No. 1 doubles with partner Joey
Loselle as a senior. His 6-1 Michigan
Intercollegiate Athletic Association
record in singles earned him First Team
All-MIAA accolades. He also was 6-1 in
doubles.
Mertz was named the MIAA Player of
the Week twice during his career, and he
made second team all-conference as a
junior, when he helped Adrian reach the
MIAA finals for the first time in school
history.
Off the court, his 3.97 cumulative GPA
earned him a spot on the 2016 College
Sports Information Directors of America
Academic All-America Third Team for
NCAA Division III.
He’s the first Adrian men’s tennis play-
er to be an Academic All-American.
He was selected to the 2016 CoSIDA
Academic All-District First Team for
students in Michigan, Minnesota and
Wisconsin. He had the highest GPA
among the four men’s tennis players on
the 10-member all-district team.
Mertz said he couldn’t have achieved
the academic honors alone.
“The awards reflect not only my
efforts, but also the never-ending sup-
port of my family, coaches, teammates
and professors,” he said.
Maxim Sukalo, Mertz’s coach in
his final two seasons at Adrian, said,
“Michael’s academic achievements along
with being Adrian’s winningest men’s
tennis player is proof there is a direct
correlation between excelling in college
athletics and the classroom.”
Mertz also was a co-winner of the Dr.
Lawrence Green scholar-athlete award.
Wait. There’s more.
Mertz found time to do commu-
nity service at Adrian. He worked
with Lenawee County youth at Adrian
College Field Day, and he served on the
Halloween Patrol, providing mentorship
and keeping children safe while walking
Adrian neighborhoods on the holiday.
He also was active at Adrian with
the Phi Kappa Alpha fraternity, Mortar
Board national honor society for college
seniors and the Adrian Student-Athlete
Advisory Committee.
All of that is in the rearview mirror
these days for Mertz.
After earning a bachelor’s degree in
biology at Adrian, he began in June at
the Michigan State University College
of Osteopathic Medicine branch in
Macomb.
“I had about a month and a half of
peace after I graduated from Adrian and
started medical school,” he said.
“Medical school is a lot more work
than college. Now I have to carve out
time for things like exercise. Otherwise,
my only activity involves a chair and
books.”
Mertz, 22, said he played in U.S.
Tennis Association tournaments this
summer, but he’s played less tennis as the
weather has gotten cooler. He has taken
up racquetball, however.
Looking back, he said, his decision to
attend Adrian was the right one.
“I went to that school not knowing a
single person and left with several great
friends,” he said. “I played for two good
coaches, worked hard at tennis and stud-
ied my butt off.
“I played at the top of our lineup all
four years I was there, so I faced the best
of the best of Division III tennis.”
Mertz said he wanted to go to college
in Michigan at a small school and Adrian
was a good match.
“My professors knew everyone in their
classes,” he said. “If you missed a class,
your professor sent you an email asking
if you were OK.”
Mertz’s parents are Howard and Jodi
Mertz of Farmington Hills.
His brother Griffin Mertz, 19, was the
2015 JN Male High School Athlete of the
Year and now plays tennis at Wayne State
University after transferring from the
University of Detroit Mercy.
Both brothers were tennis standouts at
North Farmington.
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