SEWARD, Neb. – After playing its first 11 matches of the 2022-23 season versus nonconference opponents, the Concordia University Men’s Tennis team is readying for the start of GPAC play on Saturday. The Bulldogs will welcome Hastings to Seward for an 11 a.m. CT first serve in the conference opener for both sides. Head Coach Cam Long’s squad is fresh off a 5-4 win over NCAA Division III Central College (Iowa). Concordia will carry an overall record of 6-5 into Saturday’s match.
Saturday vs. Hastings (1-6, 0-0 GPAC), 11 a.m.
--Location: Bulldog Tennis Courts (Seward, Neb.)
By the numbers
· The Bulldogs were pegged third in the GPAC preseason rankings and have remained in that position in the polls that have been released by the NAIA throughout the spring. The favorites entering conference play are Midland and Doane. The Warriors went 6-0 in league play last season and represented the GPAC at the national tournament. The first GPAC match of this season was played this past Sunday and resulted in a 6-1 win for Doane over Mount Marty.
· Long’s squad has gotten on a roll during the month of March with a 4-0 record that includes wins over Sterling College (Kan.), 7-0, Bethany College (Kan.), 7-0, Kansas Wesleyan University, 4-3, and Central College, 5-4. Those four wins followed Concordia’s 1-3 mark during the month of February. The Bulldogs also played three dual matches during the fall portion of the season and went 1-2.
· The win streak was on the line on Tuesday in Pella, Iowa, home to Central. Concordia managed to pull out the win in a fight to the finish. Shawn Springer and Manuel Rodriguez emerged victorious while winning tiebreakers at the Nos. 4 and 6 singles positions, respectively. Santiago Abadia also triumphed at No. 3 singles. The split of the six singles matches was enough to get the job done after the Bulldogs took two of three doubles clashes. The winning doubles combos were Hugo Fuentes and Juan Rabellino at No. 1 and Abadia and Eduardo Rojas at No. 3.
· Through the first 11 dual matches, Concordia players have combined to go 32-31 in singles play and 15-17 in doubles action. There are four individuals who have claimed at least five singles wins: Rodriguez (8-2), Abadia (6-3), Fuentes (5-5) and Rabellino (5-5). The most successful doubles tandem has been Abadia and Rojas, who have gone 5-1 when paired at the No. 3 spot.
· Hastings has started out 1-6 with its lone win being a 4-3 decision over Baker University (Kan.) on Feb. 19. The Broncos are currently rated sixth out of the seven teams in the GPAC. They finished last season at 4-10 overall, 2-4 GPAC. In last year's meeting, Concordia won at Hastings, 5-2.
Next week
In a rescheduled match, the Bulldogs will play at Baker University on March 28 before turning around to host Morningside on April 1.