Midwestern State at Oklahoma Wesleyan

Saturday, Feb. 12 – 2 p.m.
Oklahoma City Tennis Center (Oklahoma City, Okla.)

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. -- Midwestern State looks to go 2-0 on the season as they take their first road trip of the season on Saturday, Feb. 12. The Mustangs take on Oklahoma Wesleyan in Oklahoma City, Okla. First serve is set for 2 p.m. at the Oklahoma City Tennis Center.

ABOUT THE MUSTANGS

The Mustangs collected a sweep over McMurry in their first match of 2022. The team took all seven points in the Jan. 28 match.
 
No. 4 Alex Martinez Roca and Ben Westwick posted a 6-0 shutdown at the top doubles spot after going 11-2 in the fall semester. The duo claimed an ITA South Central Region title before registering two wins at the ITA Cup. They top the regional doubles rankings.
 
Martinez Roca, who became the first player in program history to earn an ITA Cup berth in both singles and doubles play in the same season, also gained a No. 15 single ranking. The senior from Castelldefels, Spain worked his way to a 9-5 record during the fall reaching the semifinal round of the ITA South Central Region Championship. He then reached the semifinal round of the ITA Cup. Martinez Roca is third in the regional singles ranks.
 
Brice Bradshaw and Marcal Miret Avante teamed up for the win at No. 2 doubles against the WarHawks. Newcomers Brandon Wall and Charles Heffernan gained the 6-1 win at the final doubles round.
 
Bradshaw clinched his win at the top singles spot versus McMurry. The sophomore checked in at 19thh in the South Central region singles list.
 
No. 50 Stefan Andrei gained a 6-0, 6-0 sweep at the second line on Jan. 28. Andrei earned an ITA singles' ranking of 50th after racking up an 8-5 record advancing to the quarterfinal round of the ITA South Central Region Championship. The freshman ranks fifth in the ITA South Central Region Rankings.
 
Matthew Abbey cleaned up at the third singles line, as did Jean Muniz at the fifth spot. Wall and Heffernan took 6-0, 6-0 wins at No. 4 and No. 6 singles to claim the team victory.

THE MAN IN CHARGE

Scott Linn enters his 12th season at the helm of the Midwestern State men's and women's tennis programs in 2021-22 after guiding the Mustangs to 17 NCAA Tournament appearances since arriving in Wichita Falls in the fall of 2010. The Mustangs have thrived under Linn's leadership as he revived the program to the highest level. Under Linn, the men's program posted a 170-83 (.672) mark with seven NCAA Tournament appearances while advancing to the national quarterfinals in 2013, 2014, 2016, 2018 and 2019 after a five-year absence from the postseason.

SCOUTING THE EAGLES

Oklahoma Wesleyan clinched seventh in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference Preseason Poll for 2022. The Eagles received 29 total points to finish seven of ten teams in the KCAC.
 
At the KCAC 2021 Fall Individual Championships, sophomore Jose Catala finished second in the No. 1 Men's Singles flight. He advanced to the championship match before falling to McPherson's Michael Beltran.
 
Catala and doubles partner, junior Clement Martin, finished third in the No.1 Men's Doubles.
 
The Eagles lost both September 14 matches to John Brown University. The first was a 1-6 drop followed by a 1-4 loss.

ABOUT THE SERIES

This is the first time that Midwestern State and Oklahoma Wesleyan have faced each other in MSU's 44 years as a tennis program.

UP NEXT

Midwestern State returns to Wichita Falls, Texas, with a full slate of matches against community colleges and junior colleges. First up is No. 3 Seward County Community College on Thursday, Feb. 17. The Mustangs host the Saints at MSU Tennis Center at 1 p.m. The team then takes on No. 1 Tyler Junior College on Friday, Feb. 18, at 1 p.m.