Northwest Wayne News

Wayne State University's men's tennis team ended its third consecutive NCAA Division 2 quarterfinal appearance with a 4-0 loss to Saint Leo University. The match took place at Sanlando Park in Altamonte Springs, Florida. Wayne State, ranked 20th and seeded 11th, faced the top-ranked and second-seeded Saint Leo.

This marks the third year in a row that Wayne State reached the NCAA quarterfinals, having finished second in 2022 and tied for fifth last year. The Warriors played a challenging schedule this season, competing against 12 teams ranked in the top 25, including nine matches against top-10 teams.

In doubles play, Saint Leo secured the point by winning both first and third doubles matches. Wayne State's Emil Mikkelsen and Joe Steele lost their match 6-1. Daniel Grey and Cedric Drenth were defeated by Saint Leo's Luis Iriarte and Martin Soukal with a score of 6-3. The match involving Luke Laws and Dom Spicer was halted while they were leading 5-4.

In singles competition, Saint Leo extended their lead as Laws lost his match at No. 5 singles with scores of 6-2, 6-3. Mikkelsen fell at sixth singles with scores of 6-3, 6-2. Denali Kitayama was defeated at No. 4 singles with scores of 6-0, 7-5. The remaining singles matches were unfinished when the overall outcome was decided.

Head Coach Bryan Morrow concluded his 16th season with a career record of 227 wins and 147 losses. The team will need to rebuild for the next season as key players like Dom Spicer, Luke Laws, Daniel Grey, Joe Steele, Emil Mikkelsen, and Denali Kitayama are graduating. However, junior Cedric Drenth will return along with freshman Benjamin Hill.