DES MOINES, Iowa -- The Drake University men's tennis team is making its 10th NCAA Championship appearance and travels to Stillwater, Okla, to square off against No. 25 Illinois on Friday (May 12). Match time at the Greenwood Tennis Center is slated for 10 a.m. A victory propels the Bulldogs into a showdown with the winner of the No. 11 Oklahoma State/UMKC on Saturday (May 13) at 3 p.m.
It will be the third meeting between the Bulldogs and the Fighting Illini in the NCAA Tournament. The two teams previous met in 2011 and 2015 with Illinois coming out on top in both occasions. Drake was chosen to play at the Greenwood Tennis Center on the campus of Oklahoma State for the second time as the Bulldogs and the Cowboys squared off in the opening round of the 2006 tournament.
A Look At The Bulldogs
The Bulldogs enter the tournament with a 17-11 record and won their 10th Missouri Valley Conference regular season and tournament title. Drake is tournament ready as it has faced off against 12 teams in the regular season that are in the 64-team tournament. Drake is currently on a five-match winning streak. The Bulldogs last setback was on April 1 against UC-Santa Barbara, 4-3, in Denver, Colo. Sophomore Vinny Gillespie is ranked 87th in singles nationally and holds a 18-4 record at the team's top singles spot. Classmate Tom Hands has also tallied 18 singles wins and has played at the No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5 spots. Winning the doubles point has proved to be vital for the Bulldogs as they are 13-3 when they win the doubles point.
A Look At The Fighting Illini
Illinois is making its 22nd appearance in the NCAA Championships. The Illini boast a record of 44-20 in NCAA tournament play, highlighted by a 2003 NCAA National Championship. The Illini head into the tournament with a 16-11 overall record and 8-3 mark in Big Ten play. Most recently, the Illini went 1-1 at the Big Ten Tournament, defeating Purdue, 4-1, but falling to Michigan, 4-2. Illinois will begin NCAA play with two ranked singles players, juniors Aleks Vukic (5) and Aron Hiltzik (39), as well as six freshmen on the roster.
