HORIZON LEAGUE TOURNAMENT
Tournament Central
Tournament Bracket
Live Video (ESPN+):
Semifinals I
Championship
DETROIT (4/27/18) – The quest for championship glory and a berth to the NCAA Tournament starts for the University of Detroit Mercy men's tennis team on Saturday as the Titans head to West Lafayette, Ind. for the Horizon League Tournament.
The tournament will be held at Schwartz Tennis Center at Purdue University from Apr. 27-29.
The Titans, who earned the #1 seed and a share of the regular season title, received a bye in the opening round and await the winner of #4 Green Bay and #5 UIC in the semifinals on Saturday at 3 p.m. The Phoenix and Flames square off in the quarterfinals at 3 p.m. on Friday.
The regular season title is the first in Titan men's tennis history and with 14 wins entering the tournament – the Titans have already set a program-record for wins in a season.
All of the matches will be broadcast live on ESPN+ at the links atop this page.
For a FREE 30-day ESPN+ trial, click here.
TICKETS
Prices for each day:
$7 Adults
$5 Youth (18 & younger) & Seniors (65 & older)
Horizon League students FREE with valid student ID
*CASH ONLY
DIRECTIONS
Schwartz Tennis Center
1324 McCormick Road | West Lafayette, IN 47906 | 765-494-3600
The Schwartz Tennis Center is located near the intersection of McCormick Road/St. Rd. 526 and Cherry Lane, just north of the Purdue campus. Free parking is available at the tennis center.
INCLEMENT WEATHER
If matches cannot be completed due to weather or darkness, they will be moved indoors to the courts located at the competition site. The indoor surface is the same hard court surface as the outdoor courts.
SCHWARTZ TENNIS CENTER
Schwartz Tennis Center offers the finest in indoor and outdoor tennis. The six indoor courts have a Plexipave Cushion system, with a 100-lamp indirect lighting system and a mezzanine spectator area — non-obstructed viewing 14-feet above the courts for up to 385 individuals. The 12 outdoor courts also boast the Plexipave system, with spectator seating to accomodate up to 550 individuals. The facility is handicap accessible, with elevator service to the mezzanine level for viewing.
ALL-TIME RESULTS
Titan records against… (result in 2018)
#2 Cleveland State: 5-11 (4-3 win at home)
#3 Youngstown State: 6-6 (6-1 win at home)
#4 Green Bay: 1-9 (3-4 loss at GB)
#5 UIC: 3-10 (7-0 win at home)
#6 Wright State: 3-9 (7-0 win at WSU)
TOURNAMENT HISTORY
The best-ever finish for the Titans in the conference tournament was in the 1991 MCC Tournament (now the Horizon League) – when Detroit Mercy finished runner-up to Notre Dame using a points scoring system.
Since the program was reinstated in 2009, the Titans have reached the Horizon League semifinals twice – 2013 and 2017. This season will be the Titans' third semifinal appearance.
With a win on Saturday, the Titans would make their first-ever appearance in the championship round of the HL Tournament.
LOOKING BACK
The 2018 Titans have enjoyed a record-breaking season prior to the start of the conference tournament. With 14 wins, the squad eclipsed the previous program record of 13 wins set in 1990. The regular season championship is also the first title in program history and the same goes for head coach
Aaron Paajanen's Coach of the Year award.
The Titans have collectively stepped up to accomplish the feat – with tremendous contributions from top to bottom on the lineup.
Junior
Artem Vasheshnikov was named First Team All-HL for the second straight year from the top of the order, followed by a Second Team nod for senior captain
Nathan Ponton - who moved into second place in career singles wins in program history (56) this spring.
In the meat of the order, Paajanen's freshman class of
Luka Soskic,
Jenya Sirous,
Gvidas Motuzas and
Alvaro Arce has been a force to be reckoned with. As a group, the freshman class went 24-4 in Horizon League singles play from Nos. 3-6.
Soskic leads the Titans with 21 wins – the third-most wins in single season program history, while recording a 6-1 record at No. 3 singles and teaming up to go 7-0 in doubles alongside Ponton.
Motuzas and Arce each enter the tournament with 17 wins on the season and 7-0 records at Nos. 5 and 6, respectively.
LOOKING AHEAD
To win the 2018 Horizon League Tournament, the Titans will have to be at their best. And if chalk holds, they will be looking for vengeance.
Awaiting Detroit Mercy in a potential semifinal matchup could be #4 Green Bay, who handed the Titans their only conference loss of the season – a 4-3 edge over the Titans in the Badger State on Mar. 31.
From there, the Titans are likely to face #2 Cleveland State. In the 2017 HL Tourney, the sixth-seeded Vikings upset the second-seeded Titans by a 4-1 score. Detroit Mercy got some revenge with a grueling 4-3 win over Cleveland State during the regular season on Apr. 7, but the Titans will be looking for more in a potential heavy-weight championship bout.
The Titans went 3-0 against #3 YSU, #5 UIC and #6 Wright State in 2018. Detroit Mercy won by a 6-1 score over the Penguins and defeated the Flames and Raiders by a 7-0 margin.
