No. 14 Tiger Men's Tennis strings up to face two top-15 teams this weekend.
 
During their busy spring break, the Tigers (6-6) went 3-1 on the week. Trinity dropped their first match to eighth-ranked University of Chicago but then defeated Rhodes, no. 13 Swarthmore, and no. 30 Wesleyan. After the loss, TU would go on to outscore their opponents 20-7. With their dominant play against top teams, the Tigers have swept the SCAC Weekly Awards.
 
SCAC Player of the Week - Eric Liao
 
For the first time this season, junior Eric Liao (Taipei, Taiwan / Boca Prep (Florida)) has been selected as the SCAC Player of the Week. Liao is the first Tiger to earn the award this season.
 
From the SCAC Press Release:
 
Liao went 3-0 in singles over the past week, helping the 14th-ranked Trinity men's tennis team to a 3-1 overall record. After the Tigers fell to #8 Chicago, Trinity won three straight matches against Rhodes, #13 Swarthmore, and #30 Wesleyan (CT). Liao came in to play singles in all three wins for Trinity, beginning with a #5 singles 6-1, 6-2 win to clinch the match against Rhodes. He then played line six in the team's wins over both Swarthmore and Wesleyan. Liao earned a 6-0, 6-3 win against Swarthmore, then rallied for a thrilling 3-6, 6-2, 1-0 (10-8) super tiebreaker win against Wesleyan. 
 
SCAC Doubles Team of the Week - Rob Chang and Dalton Locke
 
Landing on the list for the first time this season, the duo of Rob Chang (Aiea, Hawaii / 'Iolani School) and Dalton Locke (Humble, Texas / Kingwood) were selected as the SCAC Doubles Team of the Week.
From the SCAC Press Release:
Chang, a senior from Aiea, Hawaii, and Locke, a senior from Humble, Texas, went 2-0 as a doubles team last week, helping the 14th-ranked Tiger men's tennis team to a 3-1 overall record over Spring Break. Trinity lost its opening match to #8 Chicago, then won three straight against Rhodes, #13 Swarthmore, and #30 Wesleyan (CT). Chang and Locke came in for line three doubles in the final two wins for the Tigers - both by final scores of 6-3. The duo won 8-7 (7-4) against Swarthmore, then took an easy 8-2 win over Wesleyan to close the weekend. Locke also played with a different teammate to earn an 8-7 (7-3) win at line two in Trinity's win over Rhodes. 
 
Preview - Big Matchups
 
The Tigers will start their weekend against No. 1 Emory on Friday, March 22nd at 3:00 PM. Trinity will then play a doubleheader on Saturday, March 23rd at home against No. 16 Amherst at 11:00 AM and then Our Lady of the Lake at 5:00 PM. 
 
On the No. 1 Emory Eagles: The 2024 Indoor National Champions sport a 7-1 record so far this season. The Eagles also have the number two singles and doubles players this season. The only loss for Emory this season came on a 6-1 loss to NAIA's number one team, Georgia Gwinnett. Other than that, the Eagles have only let two other teams win more than two sets this season. The Tigers are 1-6 against the Eagles and have not defeated Emory since 2015. 
 
On the No. 16 Amherst Mammoths: The Mammoths are 6-0 this season and have dominated their competition. Amherst has only dropped more than one set once this season. Coming into Texas, the Mammoths crushed Concordia with a perfect 9-0 score. Amherst also defeated Wesleyan 7-2 on March 9th. This will be the first time that Trinity has faced off against Amherst since 2017. The Tigers are 0-4 against the Mammoths since 2011.
 
On the Our Lady of the Lake Saints: OLLU is 13-6 in the 2024 season. The Saints have played some tough competition such as NCAA I Incarnate Word, NAIA No. 1 Georgia Gwinnett, and NCAA II UTPB. The Saints have played most of these teams close but were swept by UIW and Georgia Gwinnett. Trinity and OLLU have seen each other at the Trinity Invitational early in the fall. Of the matches between Saint and Tigers players, Trinity went 11-4. In dual matches, Trinity is 1-0 against OLLU but the two teams haven't played since 2012.
 
Looking Ahead
 
The Tigers will head to St. Louis, Missouri to play against Skidmore, CMS, and WashU on March 28th, 29th, and 30th.