The University of Michigan boasts some of the top academic programs in the world, but for the Michigan men’s tennis team, one of the most important lessons was reinforced last weekend on the hard court — revenge is sweet.

Last April, the Wolverines were bounced in the first round of the NCAA Tournament by the University of Maryland. But last weekend, Michigan (3-2 overall) got its revenge in a dominant 4-0 victory against the Terrapins at the ITA Kick-Off Weekend in Austin, Texas.

“It felt great to beat Maryland after they beat us in the NCAA Tournament last year," said sophomore Barrett Franks. “I thought we worked hard to get to where we were at the end of last season, and then to lose the way we did, in the first round, it was demoralizing. But I think it made everyone hungry this year.”

The Wolverines followed up with a 5-2 win on Thursday against Louisville.

This team is drastically different from last year’s edition. They added three promising freshmen — including standout Alex Petrone — to an already young roster, which also features four sophomores, one junior and no seniors.

Having such a young team has made the leadership of the captains, junior Evan King and sophomore Shaun Bernstein, all the more important. Entering the season everybody knew that King was primed to be one of the top players in the country, and he's lived up to those expectations. The uncertainty lay in the youth and relative inexperience of the rest of the roster.

Luckily for the Wolverines, Bernstein stepped up and filled the void.

“It’s an absolute honor to be a co-captain of the team, but I don’t think I am doing anything too different or too radical," Bernstein said. "It’s just the same stuff we have been doing all along. We have a lot of freshmen, so it is very important to lead by example.”

Added Franks: “We’re a young team, and we started off slowly at the beginning, but the freshmen have all meshed well into (Michigan coach Bruce) Berque’s system.”

Undoubtedly, the experience and stability of King, combined with the newfound leadership from Bernstein, have helped enormously in turning this young squad into a team on the rise in the Big Ten.

“The freshmen look up to Shaun, they believe in what he says,” Franks said. “He leads by example and does a great job of motivating the team to win.”

The Wolverines will try and use the confidence they gained in their shutout of Maryland, as well as their win over Louisville, against a solid LSU team (2-1) on Saturday. Michigan will once again lean on its captains to set an example and lead the team to victory.

“I think this team is great," Bernstein said. "We all have a lot of fun with each other; we’re a really close group. There are no dead spots: It’s a good environment that stays light and fun. That definitely helps us on the court.”