No. 10 Tiger Men's Tennis is headed to Vermont to compete in the first round of the NCAA III Men's Tennis Championships.
 
The Tigers (16-8) destroyed the competition on their way to a 14th consecutive Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship. Trinity swept both Dallas and Schreiner and then beat Southwestern 5-3 in the final. In the 'ship, the Tigers went up 2-1 after three hard-fought doubles matches. After Aashish Dhanani (Austin, Texas / Westwood) and Rob Chang (Aiea, Hawaii / 'Iolani School) picked up singles wins, Jared Perry (Tucson, Arizona / Catalina Foothills) secured the match with his three-set victory. By winning the championship, TU secured an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. 
 
SCAC All-Tournament Team
 
After their win, six different Tigers were named to the SCAC All-Tournament Team.
 
From The SCAC Press Release:
 
Tournament Champion Trinity led the way with six different Tigers earning All-Tournament accolades. Rob Chang and Connor Whittington (Lake Oswego, Oregon / Lake Oswego) both earned All-Tournament honors for the second consecutive year. Chang and Whittington posted perfect 1-0 records at the No. 3 and No. 2 singles line respectively. Jarred Perry and Aashish Dhanani both earned All-Tournament honors in singles and doubles. Perry was slotted on the team for his efforts at the top singles and doubles line, while Dhanani posted perfect records throughout the tournament at the No. 5 singles and No. 3 doubles lines. Perry's doubles partner, Ethan Flores (Houston, Texas / Clear Lake), and Dhanani's partner, Conor Kaczmarczyk (Aurora, Colorado / Regis Jesuit) joined them on the squad to round out the TU Tiger honoree.
 
NCAA Individual Selections
 
Freshman Jared Perry has been selected for the singles bracket of the NCAA Championships. The individual championships will take place on May 26th-27th at Dwight Davis Tennis Center in St. Louis, Missouri. 
 
This being his first selection, Perry has amassed a 9-12 overall record this spring. Despite his early struggles, Perry has stormed back and won six of his last ten matches. Perry also won the final match of the SCAC Championship to win it all for the Tigers. Perry ranks 26th nationally and 6th regionally this season in singles.
 
Preview - NCAA Tournament
 
TU Men's Tennis will travel to Middlebury, Vermont for the first part of the NCAA Tournament. With their wins and good record, the Tigers earned a first-round bye. Along with the Tigers, the rest of the teams in their pods include MIT, Bridgewater State, Messiah, Allegheny, and Middlebury. The Tigers will play the winner of MIT versus Bridgewater State on Saturday, May 11th, at 2:00 PM (ET). 
 
On the MIT Engineers: The Engineers finished the 2024 regular season with an 18-3 overall record. MIT found its way to the tournament with an automatic bid after claiming a NEWMAC championship. MIT is an ultra-competitive squad that has been handed losses by No. 3 Tufts, No. 5 Bowdoin, and No. 29 RPI. In those losses, however, the Engineers took at least three sets and most matches were won by a small margin. MIT has found magic in the back end of their doubles teams as the #2 and #3 teams have a combined record of 37-5. So, look for the Tigers to put their best foot forward to try to gain an early advantage in doubles play. This could be the first time that Trinity and MIT have played against each other since the 1995-96 season. The Tigers are 2-0 against the Engineers all-time.
 
On the Bridgewater State Bears: Bridgewater State finished their season with a 9-4 record and an undefeated conference slate. The Bears earned an automatic bid with their win over Rhode Island College in the Little East Tournament Final, marking their first NCAA Tournament appearance. However, the Bears have not played a single nationally-ranked team this season and that could hurt them with the tough competition of the NCAA Tournament. However, Bridgewater State has been consistent on the back end of their singles and doubles players. Combine that with a roster that has experience and this team could be a Cinderella story. 
 
Looking Ahead
 
The winner of these three teams will play against the winner of Middlebury versus Messiah/Allegheny on Sunday.