Feature by Shawn Moran, Sun Devil Athletics' Feature Writer
TEMPE, Ariz. -- Since coach Matt Hill took over the Sun Devil men's tennis program in 2016 when the sport was reinstated at ASU, the squad has become a melting pot of sorts, with all eight members hailing from different countries and backgrounds.
ASU returned to the NCAA Men's Tennis Championships last season for the first time since the sport was dropped in 2008, and Hill knew for the program to take the next step, he needed to add a player to his young roster with championship experience.
Justin Roberts, a standout player Hill had recruited in his previous job at the University of South Florida, was looking for a new program. And with former USF player Dominic Cotrone on his staff as a volunteer coach, Hill said the decision to bring in Roberts was a "no brainer."
The fit was perfect. Roberts and Cotrone were doubles partners at USF during the 2015-16 season, and Roberts' addition added to the international flavor of ASU's roster.
When Roberts wa a young boy growing up in the Bahamas, he was watching a competitive match on television when it struck him: He wanted to be a tennis player.
"Just picked up the racket," he said matter-of-factly. "I asked my dad if I could go to this summer camp and since then, I've been playing."
It was at that summer camp that Roberts fell in love with the game and started to build a reputation as an elite juniors player. After improving year-by-year, Roberts was selected to represent the Bahamas at the second Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing, China in 2014.
"I was lucky enough to be playing my last year in an Olympic year for the Youth Olympics, and it was just a good experience to get to go and experience that type of event."
Roberts rose as high as 162nd in the world at the juniors level before moving onto the ITF Pro Circuit. At first glance, the ranking might not seem impressive. But there currently are nearly 3,000 ranked players at the juniors level.
Hill jumped at the chance to sign Roberts.
"Justin was a really good junior and was training in Florida," Hill said. "The recruiting process with him was just a normal recruiting process. We had seen him play at the Orange Bowl and worked with someone who was helping him with his situation. He took a visit to South Florida and things went really well and he ended up coming there."
"He was one guy when we brought him in, we knew his best tennis was down the road. He was nowhere near what his level or capacity could be at."
After an impressive freshman season in Tampa that included a trip to the round of 16 at the NCAA Tournament in doubles, Roberts was paired with a new partner for his sophomore doubles season in 2015-16 season. That new partner was Cotrone, a two-time American Athletic Conference second-team selection while at Florida State and the No. 1-ranked player in Florida coming out of high school.
Cotrone was one of the most-feared players at the collegiate level with a knack for knocking off top-ranked competition. Matching the senior transfer up with the young and hungry Roberts was a perfect combination for Hill.
"They were a great team," Hill said. "Dominic has great returns and is really, really good at the net. Justin has a huge serve and a lot of power, a lot of athleticism, so they complemented each other well."
The two players built a chemistry on the court quickly and the results were impressive. Roberts and Cotrone racked up an 8-2 record in doubles, including a win against Cameron Norrie and Trevor Johnson (TCU), one of the top doubles teams in the nation.
"We had not been playing together that long. It was one of our really big first matches, and . . . and we beat up on them pretty good. That kind of started our success throughout the season."
Roberts suffered a wrist injury that cut his season short but Cotrone continued to perform and became only the second All-American in USF tennis history. After graduating and spending a little time working with his family's Smoothie King franchises in Florida, Cotrone knew that he wanted to return to the tennis court.
Hill had told Cotrone about some assistant coaching positions open around the country but none seemed to fit until Hill told Cotrone that if he ever wanted a coaching position in Tempe, there would be one for him.
"He was excited about that, and so he's made the transition," Hill said. "It's been fantastic. He's been a huge value asset for us."
In addition to assisting the coaching staff and players last season, Cotrone also played a vital role in getting Roberts to ASU.
"I think me and Matt were the first two people that were aware that Justin was thinking about following us to ASU," Cotrone said. "As long as we were able to get him here, we wanted him here. So it was pretty simple. We had only had good experiences at USF, so we knew that he could only improve the program. It was an easy decision."
After spending a season without Hill as his coach, Roberts was intrigued about ASU. USF was coming off of a down season, but Roberts said that wasn't his reason for making the move.
Rather, he believed playing for Hill would make his final season something special.
"He recruited me, I believed in him as a coach and he seemed to believe in me as a player," Roberts said. "We had a good connection, so I trusted him with helping mold me into my future and what I wanted to become."
With another familiar face in Cotrone, Roberts is setting himself up for a special final collegiate season that could involve a deep run at the Pac-12 and NCAA Championships. After being teammates at USF, their coach-player relationship is a unique one.
"It's an interesting dynamic because being teammates and now essentially being in a coaching position, I feel like I coach Justin a little bit differently than I coach the other guys," Cotrone said, adding that he tries to be another voice and someone Roberts can bounce ideas off of rather than telling him what he needs to do.
Beyond ASU, Roberts hopes to be a successful player on the ITF Pro Circuit and his dream is to play consistently in televised matches. And Roberts hopes to inspire a young Bahamian to pick up a racket, just as he did.
But for now, he wants to use his experience to lead the Sun Devils.
"I want for all of us to have success on and off the court, and I just want to be a part of this group with something special," he said. "My job is to show up every day and try to be an example and to help as many guys along as I can."
Hill and Cotrone know that special players like Roberts do not come around often.
"We love having him here," Hill said. "He's an incredible person, he's an incredible leader, he's an incredible athlete, he's an incredible student."
"It's a guy that you want 10 of on your team."
TEMPE, Ariz. -- Since coach Matt Hill took over the Sun Devil men's tennis program in 2016 when the sport was reinstated at ASU, the squad has become a melting pot of sorts, with all eight members hailing from different countries and backgrounds.
ASU returned to the NCAA Men's Tennis Championships last season for the first time since the sport was dropped in 2008, and Hill knew for the program to take the next step, he needed to add a player to his young roster with championship experience.
Justin Roberts, a standout player Hill had recruited in his previous job at the University of South Florida, was looking for a new program. And with former USF player Dominic Cotrone on his staff as a volunteer coach, Hill said the decision to bring in Roberts was a "no brainer."
The fit was perfect. Roberts and Cotrone were doubles partners at USF during the 2015-16 season, and Roberts' addition added to the international flavor of ASU's roster.
When Roberts wa a young boy growing up in the Bahamas, he was watching a competitive match on television when it struck him: He wanted to be a tennis player.
"Just picked up the racket," he said matter-of-factly. "I asked my dad if I could go to this summer camp and since then, I've been playing."
It was at that summer camp that Roberts fell in love with the game and started to build a reputation as an elite juniors player. After improving year-by-year, Roberts was selected to represent the Bahamas at the second Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing, China in 2014.
"I was lucky enough to be playing my last year in an Olympic year for the Youth Olympics, and it was just a good experience to get to go and experience that type of event."
Roberts rose as high as 162nd in the world at the juniors level before moving onto the ITF Pro Circuit. At first glance, the ranking might not seem impressive. But there currently are nearly 3,000 ranked players at the juniors level.
Hill jumped at the chance to sign Roberts.
"Justin was a really good junior and was training in Florida," Hill said. "The recruiting process with him was just a normal recruiting process. We had seen him play at the Orange Bowl and worked with someone who was helping him with his situation. He took a visit to South Florida and things went really well and he ended up coming there."
"He was one guy when we brought him in, we knew his best tennis was down the road. He was nowhere near what his level or capacity could be at."
After an impressive freshman season in Tampa that included a trip to the round of 16 at the NCAA Tournament in doubles, Roberts was paired with a new partner for his sophomore doubles season in 2015-16 season. That new partner was Cotrone, a two-time American Athletic Conference second-team selection while at Florida State and the No. 1-ranked player in Florida coming out of high school.
Cotrone was one of the most-feared players at the collegiate level with a knack for knocking off top-ranked competition. Matching the senior transfer up with the young and hungry Roberts was a perfect combination for Hill.
"They were a great team," Hill said. "Dominic has great returns and is really, really good at the net. Justin has a huge serve and a lot of power, a lot of athleticism, so they complemented each other well."
The two players built a chemistry on the court quickly and the results were impressive. Roberts and Cotrone racked up an 8-2 record in doubles, including a win against Cameron Norrie and Trevor Johnson (TCU), one of the top doubles teams in the nation.
"We had not been playing together that long. It was one of our really big first matches, and . . . and we beat up on them pretty good. That kind of started our success throughout the season."
Roberts suffered a wrist injury that cut his season short but Cotrone continued to perform and became only the second All-American in USF tennis history. After graduating and spending a little time working with his family's Smoothie King franchises in Florida, Cotrone knew that he wanted to return to the tennis court.
Hill had told Cotrone about some assistant coaching positions open around the country but none seemed to fit until Hill told Cotrone that if he ever wanted a coaching position in Tempe, there would be one for him.
"He was excited about that, and so he's made the transition," Hill said. "It's been fantastic. He's been a huge value asset for us."
In addition to assisting the coaching staff and players last season, Cotrone also played a vital role in getting Roberts to ASU.
"I think me and Matt were the first two people that were aware that Justin was thinking about following us to ASU," Cotrone said. "As long as we were able to get him here, we wanted him here. So it was pretty simple. We had only had good experiences at USF, so we knew that he could only improve the program. It was an easy decision."
After spending a season without Hill as his coach, Roberts was intrigued about ASU. USF was coming off of a down season, but Roberts said that wasn't his reason for making the move.
Rather, he believed playing for Hill would make his final season something special.
"He recruited me, I believed in him as a coach and he seemed to believe in me as a player," Roberts said. "We had a good connection, so I trusted him with helping mold me into my future and what I wanted to become."
With another familiar face in Cotrone, Roberts is setting himself up for a special final collegiate season that could involve a deep run at the Pac-12 and NCAA Championships. After being teammates at USF, their coach-player relationship is a unique one.
"It's an interesting dynamic because being teammates and now essentially being in a coaching position, I feel like I coach Justin a little bit differently than I coach the other guys," Cotrone said, adding that he tries to be another voice and someone Roberts can bounce ideas off of rather than telling him what he needs to do.
Beyond ASU, Roberts hopes to be a successful player on the ITF Pro Circuit and his dream is to play consistently in televised matches. And Roberts hopes to inspire a young Bahamian to pick up a racket, just as he did.
But for now, he wants to use his experience to lead the Sun Devils.
"I want for all of us to have success on and off the court, and I just want to be a part of this group with something special," he said. "My job is to show up every day and try to be an example and to help as many guys along as I can."
Hill and Cotrone know that special players like Roberts do not come around often.
"We love having him here," Hill said. "He's an incredible person, he's an incredible leader, he's an incredible athlete, he's an incredible student."
"It's a guy that you want 10 of on your team."