IRVINE, Calif. – The brackets are out and now we know who Concordia University Irvine will face in Florida in the first round of the NCAA DII Men's Tennis Championship!
Concordia earned the No. 10 seed in the 16-team field and scored a date with No. 7 seed Washburn University this coming
Tuesday, May 20 at 9 a.m. PT (12 p.m. local ET).
This is the first trip to the NCAA DII Championship for CUI men's tennis. There are many similarities between the two squads.
Both these teams are red-hot entering the NCAA Tournament.
CUI captured its first PacWest Conference Title by overcoming top-seeded Azusa Pacific 4-3. Then just this past Friday, the Golden Eagles hosted – and
won the West Regional match for the first time in program history, defeating Point Loma for the fourth time this season.
Just like Concordia, Washburn enters the tourney with an identical 20-3 overall record after topping Southern Arkansas University 4-0 in the Central Regional. The Ichabods also won three games in a row to win the MIAA-GAC Tournament.
Washburn brings a 10-game winning streak into this showdown with Concordia and has not lost in two months since falling to Cameron University. Meanwhile, the Golden Eagles have won seven matches in a row with all three losses this season coming against ranked teams APU and Lubbock Christian. CUI is 6-3 overall against nationally-ranked teams.
It is interesting to note that one of Washburn's three losses also came at the hands of PacWest Conference member Azusa Pacific in early March by a score of 4-1. APU also made the same side of the bracket as CUI and is the No. 6 seed facing No. 11 seed North Georgia. Lubbock Christian made the dance as the No. 4 seed.
Looming in the second round will be the winner of the Barry-Ouachita Baptist match. Barry is the No. 2 seed and Ouachita Baptist enters as the No. 15 seed.
CLICK HERE for the full NCAA D2 Men's Tennis Championship Bracket
Washburn and Ouachita Baptist are also from the same conference. Washburn blanked the Tigers 4-0 and 7-0 in their two matches this spring.
Defending National Champion Valdosta State is undefeated and returns as the No. 1 overall seed. Barry won the three previous national championships at the D2 level dating back to the first year after the pandemic canceled the 2020 season.
The tournament runs May 20-24 in Altamonte Springs, Fla. as the best programs in the country vie for the NCAA DII National Title.
CLICK HERE for the full CUI men's tennis schedule
CLICK HERE to watch the CUI men's tennis team reflect on winning the DII West Regional for first time
CLICK HERE for interactive Live Updates in NCAA Bracket
