UTICA, NY - The Utica University men's tennis team begins its final week of regular season play with a crucial game heading to Alfred University on Tuesday, April 25 at 4 p.m. The game will determine which team clinches the fourth seed in the Empire 8 Tournament beginning on Friday, April 28 against No. 1 seed Houghton at 1 p.m.
 
Follow Along: Alfred will provide live video for Friday's contest via https://portal.stretchinternet.com/alfred/.
 
Last Time Out: The team fell to Nazareth 9-0 on the road on Saturday, April 22.
 
Clinching Scenarios: Utica would clinch the No. 4 seed with a win vs. Alfred Tuesday. Utica would also advance if Alfred won 5-4 or 6-3 on April 25. If the final was 7-2, it would go to tiebreaker 3 which Utica holds. The Pioneers would be eliminated with an 8-1 or 9-0 loss. Utica previously defeated Alfred 7-2 on April 8.
 
Last Time Against Alfred: Utica hosted Alfred on Saturday, April 8 and won 7-2 to collect its first Empire 8 victory of the season. Utica continued to play well in doubles as Damian Bruce (Gloversville, NY/Gloversville) and Richard Nguyen (Utica, NY/Proctor) picked up a convincing 8-0 win. The duo of Bradley Litz (West Winfield, NY/Mt. Markham) and Hunter Sanford (Delhi, NY/Delaware Academy) also won 8-0 and it is their second-straight 8-0 win in doubles. Damian Bruce (Gloversville, NY/Gloversville) and Bradley Litz (West Winfield, NY/Mt. Markham) were fantastic, both winning their singles sets 6-0 to continue their strong seasons. Nguyen won his sets 6-3 and 7-5 while Gaynay Doo (Utica, NY/Proctor) won his sets 6-4 and 6-3. Jack Paute (Utica, NY/Proctor) won a thriller taking the third set 10-8 and earning his second consecutive victory in singles.
 
Looking at Alfred: The Saxons are 3-11 and are 0-7 in Empire 8 play this season. In its last outing the team beat Medaille 6-3 on Saturday, April 22 yet the win does not count towards the Empire 8 standings as Medaille is postseason ineligible. Samuel Adu-Tutu, Wes Dennison, and Jeffrey Merejo sport perfect records at 1-0. Yet, Matthew Hibbert, Mike Roberts, and Mark Ungurian have played the most matches on the team with at least 12.
 
Up Next: If Utica wins or does not lose 9-0 or 8-1 the team will head to the Empire 8 Tournament beginning on Friday, April 28.