LEXINGTON, Va. – The Washington and Lee men's tennis team is set to make its return to the NCAA Division III Team Championship this weekend against ninth-ranked Carnegie Mellon at Swarthmore College.
POD INFO:
The Swarthmore pod opens with match play on Friday between Penn State Behrend and Allegheny, with the winning team advancing to face the host Garnet on Saturday. The advancing team from that match will then play the winner of the W&L/CMU match in Sunday's Round of 16 with a spot in the national quarterfinals in Chattanooga, Tenn., on the line.
TEAM INFO:
The Generals are 12-10 overall this season and earned the ODAC's automatic qualification into the tournament after topping Shenandoah, 4-1, in the conference title match this past weekend. It marked the program's 43rd ODAC tournament championship, with the team ready to make its 31st appearance in the national tournament this weekend.
The Gators (17-7) and Lions (18-4) both won their respective conferences to gain automatic entry into the national tournament this season. Allegheny is the champion of the Presidents' Athletic Conference, while PSU-Behrend claimed the Atlantic East Conference championship. The Gators will be making their fourth NCAA Tournament appearance this weekend, each in the last four seasons, and the Lions are in the national field for a third time in program history.
Swarthmore (20-6), ranked eighth in the most recent ITA national rankings released on May 6, enter the weekend as the Centennial Conference champions and will be making their 28th all-time appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The Tartans (14-5), one spot back of Swarthmore in the ITA national rankings, are the only at-large team in the pod after falling 4-2 to No. 16 Emory in the University Athletic Association third-place match.
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
The Swarthmore pod will feature four players who were selected to compete in either or both the NCAA Division III Singles and Doubles Championships this season, three of whom are Swarthmore players.
Max Lindstrom and Michael Melnikov of Swarthmore were among the 32 national singles qualifiers, with Alex Feies of Carnegie Mellon also selected for singles. Lindstrom is 19-10 in singles play this season, highlighted by a 9-7 record at No. 2, while Melnikov is the Garnet's top player with a 32-3 overall record. That mark is split with a 19-0 record at No. 1 singles and a 13-3 mark in tournament format. Melnikov has won 20 consecutive singles matches. Melnikov is also set to appear in the national doubles draw with teammate and Utham Koduri. That tandem owns a 15-10 record together in doubles play this season, with a 10-8 record at No. 1.
Feies leads his team in singles wins this season, as well, bringing a 21-6 record into play this weekend. He is 15-3 from the No. 1 position and 6-3 in tournament play.
Overall, Melnikov is the No. 2 singles player in Division III, per the latest ITA rankings, with Feies at No. 7 and Lindstrom ranked 36th. In doubles, the duo of Melnikov and Koduri is ranked No. 21 nationally.
WEEKEND SCHEDULE:
The Gators and Lions kick things off in Swarthmore, Pa., on Friday at 11:00 a.m., with the winning team playing Swarthmore on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. The Generals and Tartans will play Saturday at 2:00 p.m., with the regional final on Sunday at 11:00 a.m. between the two remaining teams.
For more information on this weekend's pod in Swarthmore, Pa., including player season records and projected starting lineups, check out the weekend home page
here.
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
