MIAC Men's Tennis Championship
Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Men's Tennis Championship
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Gustavus Claims 16th Consecutive MIAC Championship with 8-1 Win Over Carleton, St. Thomas Finishes Third with 5-3 Win over St. John's
ST. PETER, Minn. -The top-seeded Gustavus men’s tennis team defeated #2 seed Carleton 8-1 to win its 16th consecutive MIAC Championship and 31st in the past 34 years. Saint Thomas edged Saint John's 5-3 in the third place match. The final two matches were played indoors at the Swanson Tennis Center (on the Gustavus campus) due to a steady rain that began falling about 4:00 pm.
The Gusties, who are rated #3 nationally and #1 in the Midwest Region, will now move to NCAA Tournament play next weekend. Gustavus (26-6) will host a four-team regional next Saturday and Sunday. The complete tournament field will be announced on Monday afternoon. Carleton (20-3), which finished second in the tournament and during the regular season, will also receive strong consideration for a NCAA Tournament bid.
The third and fifth place matches were thrillers. St. Thomas won all three doubles matches in tiebreakers to take a 3-0, but St. John's won the #2, #3 and #4 singles matches to pull within 4-3. St. Thomas clinched the match when Brian Thomas (Jr, Winona, Minn.) defeated Mike Solum (Sr., Edina, Minn.) 6-4, 6-1 at #1 singles to clinch the match. St. Olaf, which finished tied for seventh place in the regular season, defeated Concordia-Moorhead 5-4 to place fifth in the tournament. Dan Cohen (Sr., St. Paul, Minn.) defeated Erik Giga (Sr., Owatonna, Minn.) 5-7, 7-6 (4), 11-9 in the superbreaker at #3 singles for the deciding match point.
During the tournament two conference awards were announced. Carleton Coach Stephan Zweifel was named MIAC Coach of the Year and Carleton senior Mike Ottum (Green Bay, Wisc.) received the Arthur Ashe Award for scholarship, citizenship, sportsmanship and tennis ability.
Match results from the final day
Championship Match - Gustavus 8 Carleton 1
Third Place Match - St. Thomas 5 St. John's 3
Fifth Place Match - St. Olaf 5 Concordia 4
Seventh Place Match - Hamline 5 St. Mary's 2
Ninth Place Match - Bethel 6 Macalester 3
Directions to Gustavus Adolphus College. The matches will be played at the Gibbs and Brown outdoor courts.
