SoCon Announces Men's Tennis Tournament Pairings

SoCon Tournament Information Page

GREENSBORO, N.C. - The UNC Greensboro (UNCG) men's tennis team earned a No. 8 seed in the Southern Conference (SoCon) men's tennis tournament. The Spartans will will face No. 1 Chattanooga on Thursday, April 20^th at 8:30 a.m. at the Champions Club in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
 
The Mocs finished the regular season with a 7-0 win at UNCG on Saturday, pushing their overall record to 16-6 and their league mark to 6-1. Chattanooga, which claimed its first SoCon regular-season title in program history, will be seeking its first SoCon tournament title since 2000 and its 13^th overall. UTC earned the No. 1 seed in the tournament for the first time.
 
Chattanooga and eighth-seeded UNCG will square off again in the first round of the tournament on Thursday at 8:30 a.m. The Spartans finished the regular season 4-21 overall and 0-7 in league play. UTC and UNCG have met in the SoCon tournament twice before, with the Mocs winning in 2005 and 2013.
 
On the same side of the bracket, No. 4 seed Samford faces No. 5 seed Furman at 8:30 a.m. Thursday. The Bulldogs, who reached last year's tournament title match, went 10-10 overall and 5-2 in SoCon play this season, including a 5-2 decision over the Paladins on March 27. Furman (10-13, 4-3 SoCon) will be trying for its league-record 15^th tournament title and first since claiming consecutive crowns in 2008 and 2009. The squads have met in the SoCon tournament three times, facing off in the semifinals in 2016, 2021 and 2022, with Furman enjoying the 2-1 advantage. The Bulldogs claimed last season's meeting, 4-2.
 
In the bottom half of the bracket, No. 3 seed ETSU faces No. 6 seed The Citadel at 10:30 a.m. Thursday. The Bucs, who are the four-time defending tournament champions, went 9-13 overall and 5-2 in league action this season, downing The Citadel 4-0 on Friday. The Bulldogs, who play a pair of nonconference matches on Sunday, finished league play with a 9-20 overall record and a 2-5 league mark, picking up their most SoCon wins since going 2-8 in 2010 and earning their highest seed in the tournament since claiming the No. 6 seed in 2008. ETSU is 6-0 against The Citadel all-time in the tournament, including a 4-0 win in last year's first round.
 
No. 2 seed Mercer faces No. 7 seed Wofford on Thursday at 10:30 a.m. The Bears, seeking their first SoCon tournament title, went 11-12 overall and 5-2 in SoCon play this season, including a 4-3 win over Wofford on Tuesday. Wofford, also looking for its first SoCon title, turned in a 5-15 overall record and went 1-6 in league play. The teams have met in the SoCon tournament twice before, with the Terriers claiming 4-3 wins in the quarterfinals in 2014 and 2015.
 
Friday's semifinals are at 10 a.m., with Saturday's title match set for 1 p.m. April 23 will serve as the rain date for the championship.
 
SoCon Men's Tennis Championship
Chattanooga, Tenn. – Champions Club
Thursday, April 20
Match 1: No. 1 Chattanooga vs. No. 8 UNCG, 8:30 a.m.
Match 2: No. 4 Samford vs. No. 5 Furman, 8:30 a.m.
Match 3: No. 3 ETSU vs. No. 6 The Citadel, 10:30 a.m.
Match 4: No. 2 Mercer vs. No. 7 Wofford, 10:30 a.m.
 
Friday, April 21
Match 5: Match 1 winner vs. Match 2 winner, 10 a.m.
Match 6: Match 3 winner vs. Match 4 winner, 10 a.m.
 
Saturday, April 22
Match 7: Match 5 winner vs. Match 6 winner, 1 p.m.