DES MOINES, Iowa – The Drake University men's tennis team, as the No. 1-seed will play the winner of Stony Brook and Illinois State in the Missouri Valley Conference Championship semifinals on Saturday at 10 a.m. in Normal, Ill.
 
The Bulldogs claimed their 10th MVC regular season championship when they defeated Wichita State, 4-3, on April 15. Vinny Gillespie, who is ranked 77th nationally in singles, leads the team with a 18-4 dual match record. Sophomore Tom Hands has been one of the most consistent players in the lineup with a 16-6 record and has gone 8-1 in his last nine matches.
 
Stony Brook enters the weekend tournament with 9-5 record and has won six of the last seven matches.
 
Illinois State has dropped five of its last six matches, including a 7-0 loss to the Bulldogs on April 8. Andreas Boers is the only Redbird with 10 singles dual match victories.
 
The winner will play the winner of Wichita State and Southern Illinois on Sunday for the MVC Championship title and receive the MVC's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.