FIRST SERVE

• The No. 20 Ichabods men's tennis team is set toplay in the MIAA/GAC Championship Tournament on Saturday-Sunday at Edmond Center Court in Edmond, Okla.
• Washburn earned the No. 1 MIAA seed and will face No. 2 GAC seed Southern Arkansas on Saturday at 10 a.m.
• Should the Ichabods advance to the Championship match, they will go head-to-head with the winner of No. 1 GAC seed Harding/No. 2 MIAA seed Northwest Missouri on Sunday at 10 a.m.

 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS

• Southern Arkansas ended the regular season with a 12-4 record (3-1 in GAC play) to earn the No. 2 GAC seed in the tournament. The Muleriders swept the Ichabods, 4-0, on April 10.
• Harding earned a 9-6 overall record this season, going 3-1 in GAC action, and earned the No. 1 GAC seed. The Ichabods and Bisons have not faced each other this season.
• Northwest Missouri went 12-4 this season with a 2-1 conference record, earning the No. 2 MIAA seed. The Ichabods defeated the Bearcats, 4-3, on April 24.

 
LAST TIME OUT

• The Ichabods improved to a 10-3 overall record, going 3-0 in MIAA action, after a 4-3 win over Northwest Missouri on April 24.
• This match was a battle for first place as both teams were tied with a 2-0 conference record coming in to the match. With the Washburn win, the Ichabods claimed the No. 1 MIAA seed in the MIAA Championship, while Northwest Missouri took the second seed.
• Washburn won the doubles point by taking wins at the first and second spots. The No. 12 nationally-ranked doubles pair of Bradley Eidenmueller and Sebastian Pjontek defeated their opponents by a score of 6-2 from the top spot, before Paul Haase and Miquel Perez won their match at the No. 2 spot with a 6-4 victory. 
• Haase opened singles play with a 6-2, 6-3 triumph over his opponent at the third spot. After the Ichabods lost two points as No. 37 nationally-ranked Perez fell to Fabien Calloud of Northwest Missouri at the No. 2 spot and No. 24 Raul-Alin Dicu fell to the Bearcats' No. 6 nationally-ranked Andrea Zamurri at the top spot, the match was tied and it all came down to the bottom half of Washburn's lineup to win it. 
• Eidenmueller battled back and forth in three sets with his Northwest Missouri opposition at the No. 4 spot, ultimately winning it by set scores of 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 to put the Ichabods back on top. With the match on the line, Daniel Bird and Marc Roura Casi went to work at the fifth and sixth spots, both going to three sets. To clinch the Ichabods' win, Bird took down his opponent by set scores of 6-3, 3-6, 6-2 at the bottom of the lineup. Roura Casi battled till the very end, taking his opponent to three sets and a tiebreaker, but fell by scores of 3-6, 6-4, 6-7 (4-7). The Ichabods still claimed a 4-3 victory over the Bearcats.

 
CONFERENCE ACCOLADES

• Paul Haase earned MIAA Men's Tennis Athlete of the Week earlier this week for his second time this season.
• Five Ichabods earned spots on the All-MIAA Second Team- Haase, Bradley Eidenmueller, Daniel Bird and Marc Roura Casi at the No. 3-6 singles spots, respectively. Haase and Miquel Perez earned the award at No. 2 doubles as well.
• Two Washburn student-athletes were named to the All-MIAA Honorable Mention Team as well- Raul-Alin Dicu at No. 1 singles and Perez at No. 2 singles.

 
CHECKING IN WITH THE BODS

• Bradley Eidenmueller has gone a stellar 9-0 in singles action, playing mainly at the No. 4 spot. Eidenmueller is also 9-4 in doubles action. With partner Sebastian Pjontek, they have gone 7-2 from the No. 1 doubles spot. 
• Paul Haase holds an 9-2 singles record this season. Haase also has a 8-4 doubles record. With partner Miquel Perez, he has earned a 6-2 doubles record from the second spot.
• Newcomer Daniel Bird has gone a perfect 7-0 in singles action to make a commanding first impression on the Washburn team.
• Playing at the bottom of the lineup, Miller Zeiders and Marc Roura Casi have split duties throughout the season. Zeiders holds a perfect 4-0 record so far, while Roura Casi has a 7-2 record.

 
ICHABODS IN THE RANKINGS

• The Ichabods are ranked No. 20 in the nation according to the most recent ITA national team rankings released on April 20, 2021. Regionally, they are ranked first in the central region, released on March 23.
• Two Ichabods were listed in the top-40 of the first national singles rankings of the season, released on April 8, 2021. Raul-Alin Dicu checked in at No. 24 and Miquel Perez sits at No. 37.
• The No. 1 doubles duo of Sebastian Pjontek and Bradley Eidenmueller are ranked No. 12 in the national doubles rankings.
• The Ichabods were picked second in the north division in the MIAA/GAC Preseason Coaches Poll, released on February 5, 2021. The team gathered three-first place votes and 26 points total.

 
HEAD COACH KIRBY RONNING

• Kirby Ronning is in his first season as the Washburn head tennis coach for the Ichabods men's and women's programs after being named to the position on July 23, 2020. Prior to Washburn, Ronning spent four seasons as the assistant coach at Azusa Pacific, where he helped lead the Cougars to multiple NCAA postseason appearances and earned himself both ITA West Region's Men's Tennis Assistant Coach of the Year and Women's Tennis Assistant Coach of the Year. 
• He earned his bachelor's degree in business from Bethel University (Minn) in 2014 and his master's in physical education from Azusa Pacific in May 2020.
• Ronning also played at Bethel for four years, playing primarily at No. 2 singles and No. 1 doubles position.

 
TAKE A LOOK AHEAD

• Washburn is currently ranked No. 2 in the Central Region. The selection committee will determine what four teams advance to the Central Regional on May 4 at 9 p.m. on NCAA.com.
• The Central Regional is set to take place on May 7-9 at Edmond Center Court in Edmond, Okla.