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University of Massachusets Athletics
November 05, 2026 | Tennis
AMHERST, Mass. – University of Massachusetts tennis head coach Juancarlos Nunez announced the hiring of Aleksa Bucan as an assistant coach on Thursday.
"I'm happy to welcome Aleksa into our UMass Tennis family," said Nunez. "He has learned from great coaches and I am excited to see the ways in which he will contribute to our team and help our student-athletes on and off the court. His commitment and passion is clear and I know he will have a great impact on our program."
Bucan joins the Minutewomen after serving as the Interim Head Tennis Coach for both the men's and women's programs at Division II Southern Arkansas University.
"I'm incredibly excited to be part of the UMass tennis program and to work alongside head coach Nunez," said Bucan. "UMass has a great tradition, and I look forward to contributing to the team's success, developing our student-athletes, and building something special together."
At Southern Arkansas, Bucan guided both the men's and the women's squads to their respective conference championships for the 2026 season. He was promoted to Interim Head Tennis Coach in August of 2026, after spending the 2025-26 season as the assistant coach. He developed and made an impact of the success of the student-athletes across both programs. He mentored six all-conference members from both the men's and women's teams.
With the men's team, Bucan coached the MIAA-GAC Freshman of the Year and Mulerider Athletics Male Newcomer of the Year. He also saw two members receive First Team Singles and Second Team Singles honors.
For the women's program, he helped develop the league's top performer and All-GAC First Team honoree, while overseeing two players who earned All-GAC Second Team recognition and an ITA Division II Doubles All-American duo.
Prior to his time at Southern Arkansas, Bucan played for one year at the University of Illinois-Chicago. There, he was named the 2023 Southland Conference Newcomer of the Year and landed on the conference's All-Conference First Team. The team captain finished with a 12-7 singles record and a 12-5 doubles mark, leading UIC in doubles victories while ranking second on the team in singles wins. Bucan appeared in 19 matches across the top three singles positions and was at the No. 2 and No. 3 positions in doubles play.
Before UIC, Bucan was three-year member of the University of Arkansas men's tennis team from 2019-22. He climbed as high as No. 27 in the singles rankings and finished his junior season ranking fourth in the region. The 2021-22 season saw Bucan post a 20-11 overall singles record, including six victories over SEC opponents. He also garnered SEC Newcomer of the Week in the 2020-21 year after securing the clinching spot in Arkansas' upset of No. 3 Tennessee.
While at UIC, Bucan coached at the Midtown Athletic Club, and coached at the Tennis Club Harheim E.V., in Frankfurt, Germany, during the summers of 2020, 2021 and 2022.
As a high school player, Bucan was the U18 national champion with T.C. Palmengarten in 2017. He was also named the National Champion in 2013-18 with TK Crvena Zcezda and ranked No. 1 in Serbia at the U14, U16 and U18 levels.
A native of Belgrade, Serbia, Bucan earned his bachelor's degree in criminology with a minor in history and sociology from UIC in May of 2024.
Over the summer of 2026, Bucan got married to his wife, Taylor.
"I'm happy to welcome Aleksa into our UMass Tennis family," said Nunez. "He has learned from great coaches and I am excited to see the ways in which he will contribute to our team and help our student-athletes on and off the court. His commitment and passion is clear and I know he will have a great impact on our program."
Bucan joins the Minutewomen after serving as the Interim Head Tennis Coach for both the men's and women's programs at Division II Southern Arkansas University.
"I'm incredibly excited to be part of the UMass tennis program and to work alongside head coach Nunez," said Bucan. "UMass has a great tradition, and I look forward to contributing to the team's success, developing our student-athletes, and building something special together."
At Southern Arkansas, Bucan guided both the men's and the women's squads to their respective conference championships for the 2026 season. He was promoted to Interim Head Tennis Coach in August of 2026, after spending the 2025-26 season as the assistant coach. He developed and made an impact of the success of the student-athletes across both programs. He mentored six all-conference members from both the men's and women's teams.
With the men's team, Bucan coached the MIAA-GAC Freshman of the Year and Mulerider Athletics Male Newcomer of the Year. He also saw two members receive First Team Singles and Second Team Singles honors.
For the women's program, he helped develop the league's top performer and All-GAC First Team honoree, while overseeing two players who earned All-GAC Second Team recognition and an ITA Division II Doubles All-American duo.
Prior to his time at Southern Arkansas, Bucan played for one year at the University of Illinois-Chicago. There, he was named the 2023 Southland Conference Newcomer of the Year and landed on the conference's All-Conference First Team. The team captain finished with a 12-7 singles record and a 12-5 doubles mark, leading UIC in doubles victories while ranking second on the team in singles wins. Bucan appeared in 19 matches across the top three singles positions and was at the No. 2 and No. 3 positions in doubles play.
Before UIC, Bucan was three-year member of the University of Arkansas men's tennis team from 2019-22. He climbed as high as No. 27 in the singles rankings and finished his junior season ranking fourth in the region. The 2021-22 season saw Bucan post a 20-11 overall singles record, including six victories over SEC opponents. He also garnered SEC Newcomer of the Week in the 2020-21 year after securing the clinching spot in Arkansas' upset of No. 3 Tennessee.
While at UIC, Bucan coached at the Midtown Athletic Club, and coached at the Tennis Club Harheim E.V., in Frankfurt, Germany, during the summers of 2020, 2021 and 2022.
As a high school player, Bucan was the U18 national champion with T.C. Palmengarten in 2017. He was also named the National Champion in 2013-18 with TK Crvena Zcezda and ranked No. 1 in Serbia at the U14, U16 and U18 levels.
A native of Belgrade, Serbia, Bucan earned his bachelor's degree in criminology with a minor in history and sociology from UIC in May of 2024.
Over the summer of 2026, Bucan got married to his wife, Taylor.
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