(Story courtesy of Trinity University Sports Information)
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. - The Trinity men’s tennis team advanced to the NCAA Division III Tennis Championship Quarterfinals with a 5-3 victory over the host University of Mary Washington in Saturday's third round-match.
Third-ranked Trinity improved to 19-8 and and will take on the winner of Middlebury (CT) College and Bowdoin (ME) College in the quarterfinals on May 18 at Mason, Ohio. The semifinals and championship will be played May 19-20.
The Tigers had to work hard for their third straight trip to the final eight, as Trinity was down 1-2 after Saturday’s doubles matches with the 14th-ranked Mary Washington squad. Trinity got on the board first as Aaron Skinner and Adam Krull won No. 1 doubles, but Mary Washington tied the match as Charlie Curtis and Chas Mayer fell at the No. 3 match. The hosts then finished off doubles by defeating the team of Jordan Mayer and Clayton Niess to take a 2-1 advantage.
Jordan Mayer quickly made up for his loss in doubles, tying the team match score with a straight-set win at No. 3 singles. Chas Mayer then lost a tightly played No. 6 match as Mary Washington again took the lead. Fortunately for the Trinity crew, it would be the last point of the day for their hosts.
Curtis won the No. 4 matchup, and Niess came out on top in a second-set tiebreaker, pushing Trinity to a 4-3 lead. Krull then clinched the team’s trip to Ohio by winning a second-set tiebreaker at No. 1 singles. The only match which did not finish was Skinner’s No. 2 singles pairing, as the Tiger senior was a mere two points from adding to the win column.
Led by sixth-year Head Coach Russell McMindes, Trinity had a first-round bye, followed by a 5-0 shutout win over Wilkes (PA) University in Friday’s second-round match. The Tigers also stand at 15-3 against Division III opponents. Last year, Trinity advanced to the semifinals at Claremont, California, and won third place at the national event.
