Mustangs ready to close dream season at nationals

Dating back to the first match of the season, the Morningside men's tennis team set two goals: return to the national tournament and win the first national tournament dual in program history.

The 11th-seeded Mustangs accomplished the first part. Now, they'll chase the second beginning at 9 a.m. Tuesday against Bethel in Mobile, Alabama.

Morningside earned its automatic berth into the NAIA National Tournament by winning the Great Plains Athletic Conference Tournament on April 25, defeating Concordia 4-0 in the championship dual.

During that victory, GPAC Player of the Year Marcos Menendez Hervella clinched the match with a singles win. Jesse Gerth contributed victories in singles and doubles alongside teammate Mathys Arnold, while the No. 1 doubles pairing of Menendez Hervella and senior Alexis Diaz also helped secure the title.

"This team has made a lot of commitment, and we've won a lot of trophies, but this (national) one is missing," Diaz said. "It would be amazing and an honor to win it."

Morningside is making its third straight appearance at the NAIA National Tournament, but the Mustangs believe there is still more to accomplish.

A win Tuesday would not only give Morningside its first national tournament dual victory in program history, but also mark the first NAIA National Tournament win by a GPAC men's tennis team.

"The job isn't done, and this is what we've been working for all season," head coach Alex Struck '16 said. "It's been a good stretch, but we can't relax."

This also won't be the first meeting this season between Morningside and Bethel.

Back on March 14, the Mustangs edged the Threshers 4-3 in a dual that lasted more than five hours. Gabriel Whiston clinched the victory in the final match on the court after rallying from a first-set loss to win the second set 6-3 before dominating the tiebreaker 6-1.

Struck has reminded his team that the earlier result means little heading into Tuesday's rematch.

"They have the same stuff on us, and we won a tough one against them," Struck said. "Out of everybody we've played, they're one of the best competitive teams top to bottom. No matter what the score is, they have no quit. Just because we beat them once doesn't mean it'll be easy."

The Mustangs' senior class — Joao Pedro Pierry Izoldi Costa, Abhishek Mohapatra, and Diaz — hopes to finish its career by helping the program reach another milestone.

"For Joao and I, we've been here all four years, and we've seen when this program only had four players," Mohapatra said. "Now we've come a long way. It means a lot to be at nationals. I hope we make a good run and add more records."