Tom January was a four-year member of the UMSL tennis team and was instrumental in turning the team into a successful and winning program. Prior to his arrival at UMSL, the tennis program went 6-32 in four years, but turned it around quickly and went 43-27 for the next four years with January on the team. In 1971, he went 13-2 in singles play and was voted MVP of the team as a freshman. In that season, he led the team to its first-ever winning season with a 10-6 team record. January went 10-5 in his sophomore year and 13-3 during his junior year while leading the team to a 12-7 record, its most wins in a season up to that point in the program’s history. He finished his career by going 14-6 during his senior season, finishing up his career with an overall singles record of 50-16.