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CHICAGO, Ill. -- The University of Chicago men's tennis team open their run to back-to-back National Championships on Saturday afternoon as they take on #62 Grinnell in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at UW-Whitewater.

#4 UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO NOTES:

* UChicago comes in with a 21-3 record overall this season after a second place finish in the UAA.
* The Maroons had their eight-match winning streak snapped in the loss in the UAA Championship. The team had compiled wins over #14 WashU, #22 Carnegie Mellon, #26 UW-Whitewater, #27 NYU, and #34 Gustavus Adolphus.
* UChicago comes in at 12-3 in matches over top-35 teams this season with two losses against #1 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and one to #5 Case Western.
* Michael Choi leads the Maroons in singles play this season with a 21-3 record overall and a 15-1 record in dual matches to take the #20 spot in the NCAA Division III singles rankings and the #10 spot in the Central Region.
* Alexander Ekstrand has also added 21 wins with just five losses as he is ranked as the #6 singles player in NCAA Division III and the #3 singles player in the Central Region.
* Emil Grantcharov also enters the weekend ranked as the #13 singles player in NCAA Division III and the #4 singles player in the Central Region with a 15-8 record on the year.
* Both Ekstrand and Grantcharov were selected to compete in the NCAA Individual National Champioznhips in Claremont, California at the end of the month.
* In doubles play, Derek Hsieh has played lights out with a 23-7 record to lead the Maroons. Hsieh and Grantcharov are ranked as the #23 doubles team in NCAA Division III and the #7 team in the Central Region with a 12-6 record as a team.
* Andrei Leonov and Pat Otero have played well in doubles play this season and enter the weekend ranked as the #2 doubles team in NCAA Division III and the #1 doubles team in the Central Region with an 14-7 record as a tandem. The duo was selected to compete in the NCAA Doubles National Championships at the end of the month.
* With a win, UChicago will advance to the Regional Championship round on Sunday afternoon with the winner of that match receiving a berth in the NCAA National Championships in Claremont, California.

#62 GRINNELL NOTES:

* Grinnell comes in at 13-12 on the season after winning their 21st consecutive MWC Tournament Championship.
* The Pioneers blanked both Illinois College and Lake Forest on the way to their tournament title.
* This is the 18th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance for the Pioneers.
* Grinnell has won of 8 of their last 10 matches with a 7-0 scoreline. Their lone losses have come to #4 UChicago and #32 WashU.
* The Pioneers are looking to reach the first Regional Championship in program history despite reaching the second round eight different times.
* Henry Park leads the team with 14 singles wins on the season.

SERIES HISTORY:

* UChicago has a perfect 5-0 record all-time against Grinnell, including a 7-0 win earlier this season in Chicago.
* This would be the third NCAA Tournament meeting between the Maroons and the Pioneers. UChicago won both matches with a score of 5-2 in 2023 and 2011. 

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE:

Match 1 - #62 Grinnell 4, #58 Kalamazoo 2
Match 2 - #29 UW-Whitewater 4, #55 Luther 0
Match 3 - #4 UChicago vs. #62 Grinnell - Saturday, May 10 at 10 AM CT
Match 4 - #29 UW-Whitewater vs. #30 Gustavus Adolphus - Saturday, May 10 at 2 PM CT
Match 5 - Regional Championship - Sunday, May 11 at 12 PM CT