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GRINNELL, Iowa – The Midwest Conference (MWC) Men’s Singles Tournament will be held on Saturday, April 29 at Nielsen Tennis Stadium on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  Grinnell College has earned the top seeds at the No. 1, 3, 4, and 5 positions. 

Tournament Page

No. 1 Singles
The Pioneers’ Cole Miller is the top seed in the top bracket and has a 12-3 record at that spot.  Miller was the No. 3 champion in 2015 and finished as the runner-up at No. 2 last season.  Cornell’s Gabriel Souza is 14-9 on the year and has his sights set on being the top tennis player in the MWC.  Reigning MWC Performer of the Week David Jumes of Lawrence University is the third seed and the defending No. 1 singles champion, Dan Pivonka of Lake Forest College, could make an interesting semifinal against Miller.  Illinois College’s Miguel Vaca is also a strong No. 5 seed and sports an 11-6 record on the year. 

No. 2 Singles
The Foresters’ Trevor Allen is the defending champion at the No. 2 slot and produced a 10-8 regular season record, including a 7-7 mark at No. 2.  If the seeds hold, Allen could meet Dylan Wong of Monmouth College, who he beat 6-1, 6-2 in the regular season.  In the bottom half of the bracket, Grinnell’s Sam Stickels is the No. 2 seed after registering a 9-6 regular season record at the position.  Stickels was the MWC champion at No. 5 last season.  It should be a great semifinal matchup between Stickels and Hayden Dzurisin of Cornell College.  Dzurisin is the No. 3 seed, but beat Stickels 6-4, 6-2 earlier this year. 

No. 3 Singles
Tommy Pitcher of Grinnell is the favorite at the No. 3 position.  Pitcher is looking to win his third MWC singles crown after he won at No. 4 in his freshman season and at No. 6 last year.  The senior boasts a 17-5 record on the year and is 11-2 at No. 3.  Pitcher should have a clear path to the title match.  He recently defeated No. 4 seed Paulo Pliego of Monmouth 6-1, 6-2.  Lake Forest’s Nick Zazove will be Pitcher’s top competition and has 20 wins to his name this year.  Zazove and Shoma Kishimoto of Cornell should produce a hotly contested semifinal.  On April 9, Zazove prevailed over Kishimoto 7-6 (7-4), 6-3.

No. 4 Singles
Zach Lane tops the bracket for Grinnell at this position, a spot that the Pioneers have won the title at for the last five years.  Lane is 5-0 in conference action, but is under .500 on the season at 10-13. Lane will likely face Lake Forest’s Ellis Lora-Arceo in the semifinals.  Lane didn’t compete in the dual between the two schools earlier this season.  Aditya Goyal of Cornell College is the No. 2 seed at the bottom of the bracket and suffered his only conference defeat to Lane.  To get to Lane though, Goyal will have to get past Monmouth’s Saxon Day, who was last season’s runner-up.  Goyal narrowly defeated Day on April 22, 7-6 (4-7), 6-7 (7-4), 10-7.    

No. 5 Singles
Grinnell senior Will Hamilton is hoping to extend the Pioneers’ winning streak at the position to five seasons after earning the top seed.  Hamilton has played at No. 3, 4, 5, and 6 this season and has produced an 8-9 record.  Hamilton could face a stern test from No. 4 seed Jordan Crump of St. Norbert in the semifinals.  Crump is 11-3 on the year and 6-1 in the MWC.  In the bottom half of the bracket, Cornell’s Tucker Barnes is the No. 2 seed after racking up 12 wins during the regular season.  At last season’s tournament, Barnes advanced to the semifinals at No. 3.  Barnes should meet Lawrence’s Cade Francour in the semis.  Francour is an even 10-10 on the year. 

No. 6 Singles
Matt La Violette is in line to win St. Norbert’s first-ever No. 6 singles title and their first singles crown since Aaron Sunday won four straight No. 1 singles titles from 2004-07.  La Violette was defeated in last season’s semifinals, but has earned the top seed after going 7-1 in the regular season and a perfect 6-0 in MWC action.  Grinnell’s Ben Cobin is the No. 2 seed and is aiming to continue the Pioneers ownership at the spot.  The Pioneers have won every No. 6 title since 2003.  Cobin has racked up 16 victories this season to just two losses.  Lake Forest’s Nick Rehm and Cornell’s Nick Van Den Handel could also factor into the mix. 

First serve on Saturday begins at 8:00 a.m.