2026-27 will be Michels' third season as Head Women's Tennis Coach for the Blue Devils.
2025-26 The Blue Devils saw their record improve for a second consecutive season in Michels' second campaign as head coach. 2025-26 was a historic year for Blue Devil tennis. In the fall, Molly Garber and Ashlyn Dellemann were named WIAC Doubles Team of the Week after defeating UW-Eau Claire at #1 doubles for the firest time since 2008. This was the first WIAC doubles recognition for the Blue Devils since the 2014 season. The Blue Devils continued making regional strides, competing in the ITA Regional Championships for the first time since 2012. Another big program milestone was hit in the spring, as the Blue Devils competed in the program's first ever Spring Break Tournament in Orlando, Florida. The Blue Devils continued to excel academically, achieving at 3.68 team gpa, earning the team ITA Academic All-Region honors.
2024-25: The Blue Devils saw their record improve by four match wins in Michels' first year as head coach, the most wins for the team since the 2021 season. Michels earned his first career win in the first weekend of competition against Buena Vista by a score of 7-0. Michels oversaw freshman Molly Garber earn WIAC player of the week honors, the first time a Blue Devil had won the award since the 2021 season. The Blue Devils excelled in the classroom, achieving a cumulative team gpa of 3.7. The team earned ITA Academic All-Region honors, and senior Ella Lamppa was recognized with CSC Academic All-Region honors.
Michels arrived at Stout with seven years of professional experience as a tennis coach. He coached high school players as a pro for Green Bay Tennis Center, and spent two years as a Racquets Professional at Green Bay Country Club. Michels was the lead instructor for Menomonie Parks and Recreation and a tennis professional at the Duluth Indoor Sports Center. Collegiately, he spent three seasons as an assistant women's tennis coach- one season at UW-Stout and two seasons at St. Norbert College.
Collegiately, Michels was a student-athlete and team captain on both UW-Superior and St. Norbert's tennis teams. He helped lead UW-Superior to the program's first ever UMAC Conference Championship appearance. At St. Norbert, he led the Green Knights to their first-ever conference championship in the school's 86 year history. He won the individual Upper Midwest Athletic Conference Sportsmanship Award in 2019 and 2021. He was a four-time academic all-conference selection and a three-time Intercollegiate Tennis Association Scholar-Athlete Award winner.
The Menomonie native earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration in 2021 from the University of Wisconsin-Superior. In 2024, he earned a Master's in Business Administration from St. Norbert College.
Michels also serves as the Assistant Director of Sports Communications, helping cover and promote the Blue Devils 22 sports and over 700 student athletes.
