St. Peter, Minn. – The Gustavus Adolphus men’s tennis team is set to take on St. Olaf College in the MIAC Playoff Championship on Sunday, May 4 at 1:00 p.m. The match is scheduled to be played outdoors on the Brown Outdoor Courts located at the northwest corner of campus. If inclement weather occurs, the match will be moved indoors to the adjacent Swanson Tennis Center and will begin within two hours of the original start time. Updates will be made on the Gustavus and MIAC websites if locations and times change.
Top-seeded Gustavus earned a trip to the championship match via a 9-0 victory over Saint John’s in the semifinals on Friday at the Swanson Tennis Center. Fourth-seeded St. Olaf finds itself in the championship match thanks to an upset over second-seeded Carleton on Friday in Northfield. St. Olaf took two points in doubles before earning a decision with wins at No. 1, 2, and 6 singles. Gustavus defeated St. Olaf in an early regular season meeting by the score of 9-0 in a match played in Owatonna.
The Gusties head into Sunday’s contest with an overall record of 27-5. Since the initiation of the current playoff format in 2007, Gustavus has won the tournament six times (’07, ’08, ’09, ’11, ’12, ’13). Head Coach Tommy Valentini’s squad is ranked No. 15 in the nation and No. 4 in the central region according to the most recent ITA Division III Rankings. St. Olaf is 10-5 overall and has won its last five matches. Sunday’s title bout marks the third meeting between the Gusties and Oles in the MIAC Playoffs. Gustavus won the first meeting in the championship 8-1 on May 2, 2009, and later topped the Oles 5-0 in the semifinal round on May 7, 2011.
The Playoff champion will receive the MIAC’s automatic bid to the 2014 NCAA Division III Men’s Tennis Tournament.
Live stats for Sunday’s match will be provided.
Gustavus
Roster | Statistics | Schedule/Results
St. Olaf
Roster | Statistics | Schedule/Results
The MIAC has a home page dedicated to the 2014 MIAC Men’s Tennis Playoffs, containing schedules, links and information on each of the six teams in the field. Throughout the tournament, the page will be updated with scores, stats, updated schedules and more.
Fans can also track all the Playoff action on the MIAC Scoreboard or the MIAC mobile app, which is a free download for both Apple and Android devices. Connect throughout the tournament on social media through the MIAC’s Facebook page or Twitter account, using the hashtags #MIACMT and #MIACPlayoffs.