[Men's Tennis] Men's Tennis Earns At-Large Bid to NAIA Tournament
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – After the SDC men's tennis team fell in the semifinals of the GSAC Tournament last week, the Hawks were looking for an at-large bid into the national tournament.
They didn't have to wait too long as the No. 13 team in the nation will be headed back to Mobile, Ala. for their second time in school history.
SDC earned one of the final at-large bids after finishing the season with a 6-10 record.
The field consists of 14 automatic berths, including one host berth, and nine at-large selections. Automatic qualification is given to conference and unaffiliated grouping tournament champions and runners-up, depending on the conference. For the first year, at-large teams were determined by the NAIA Tennis National Selection Committee (NSC).
The NSC consists of one representative from each geographic area, a representative from the National Administrative Council (NAC) Rules and Ratings Committee, the president of the Tennis Coaches Association and two at-large members. The committee evaluated teams throughout the year on various criteria. Mobile (Ala.) received the host berth.
SDC has a record of 1-1 in the national tournament and will find out who they play in the first match as the bracket will be released tomorrow afternoon.
2017 NAIA Men's Tennis National Championship Qualifiers
School | Qualification | 2017 Record | Apearances | Last Time | NC Record | Titles |
Arizona Christian | At-Large | 15-12 | 1 | N/A | 0-0 | 0 |
Asbury (Ky.) | River States Conference Tournament Champion | 16-1 | 4 | 2015 | 0-3 | 0 |
Campbellsville (Ky.) | Mid-South Conference Tournament Champion | 20-3 | 2 | 2012 | 0-1 | 0 |
Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) | Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament Champion | 18-5 | 3 | 2016 | 1-2 | 0 |
Coastal Georgia | At-Large | 13-6 | 4 | 2016 | 3-3 | 0 |
Georgia Gwinnett | At-Large | 19-0 | 4 | 2016 | 12-0 | 3 |
Hastings (Neb.) | Great Plains Athletic Conference Tournament Champion | 11-8 | 7 | 2016 | 0-6 | 0 |
Keiser (Fla.) | The Sun Conference Tournament Champion | 19-4 | 1 | N/A | 0-0 | 0 |
Lawrence Tech (Mich.) | At-Large | 20-6 | 1 | N/A | 0-0 | 0 |
Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) | At-Large | 16-6 | 14 | 2015 | 11-13 | 0 |
Marian (Ind.) | Crossroads League Tournament Champion | 16-9 | 3 | 2016 | 0-2 | 0 |
McPherson (Kan.) | Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament Champion | 11-3 | 3 | 2016 | 1-2 | 0 |
Middle Georgia State | At-Large | 9-8 | 1 | N/A | 0-0 | 0 |
Mobile (Ala.) | Host Berth | 20-3 | 10 | 2016 | 0-9 | 0 |
Northwestern Ohio | Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference Tournament Champion | 21-1 | 5 | 2016 | 4-4 | 0 |
Our Lady of the Lake (Texas) | Unaffiliated Group - Red River/Sooner/AII Tournament Champion | 8-5 | 2 | 2016 | 0-1 | 0 |
Reinhardt (Ga.) | Appalachian Athletic Conference Tournament Champion | 13-5 | 3 | 2016 | 1-2 | 0 |
San Diego Christian (Calif.) | At-Large | 6-10 | 2 | 2015 | 1-1 | 0 |
SCAD Savannah (Ga.) | At-Large | 8-5 | 4 | 2009 | 3-3 | 0 |
Tennessee Wesleyan | At-Large | 12-4 | 2 | 2010 | 0-1 | 0 |
Westmont (Calif.) | Golden State Athletic Conference Tournament Champion | 13-7 | 9 | 2016 | 8-8 | 0 |
William Carey (Miss.) | Southern States Athletic Conference Tournament Champion | 13-5 | 7 | 2016 | 4-6 | 0 |
William Woods (Mo.) | Unaffiliated Group - AMC/Heart Tournament Champion | 13-5 | 1 | N/A | 0-0 | 0 |
Xavier (La.) | At-Large | 11-5 | 9 | 2016 | 10-8 | 0 |