MAGNOLIA, Ark. – The Southern Arkansas University Men's Tennis team will open its 2026 spring season on the road in Dallas, Texas, as it begins its quest for the MIAA championship in April.
 
Weekend Schedule
SAU vs. Weatherford College || 2/6 (10:30 a.m.)
SAU vs. UT-Dallas || 2/6 (3:00 p.m.)
SAU vs. Cameron || 2/7 (1:00 p.m.)
 
The Mulerider men were voted preseason third in the South Division of the MIAA/GAC preseason coaches' poll. The group finishes behind two GAC foes in Harding and Ouachita, who each received first-place votes in the poll. The placement comes after advancing to the postseason in 2025.
 
In the fall, the men had a strong showing at the GAC individual championships, nearly sweeping all of the singles play titles as the unit won four out of the five flights. Lucas Ntizschke won flight two of the finals, defeating Southeastern's Eric Poindexter and Edorado D'Arrigo as well as Ouachita's Moritz Buss to clinch the championship. Jonas Sommer also played in the flight three championship before falling in a slugfest with Uwe Diehl who went on to win the flight three title. Shun Wakino also won his flight for the men defeating Harding's David Campbell and then Luke Rhoden to clinch the championship.
 
The men will open their spring season against Weatherford College at 10:30 a.m. on February 6th. This will be the first time the two teams have met. The Coyotes finished last season with a 6-11 record overall last season.
 
SAU will then prepare to face off against UT-Dallas at 3:00 p.m., also on the 6th. The teams will meet for the first time in the history of both programs, as UT-Dallas is now a member of the Lone Star Conference. UTD finished last season with a 5-9 record, but had several players record strong performances at the ITA Fall Regionals.
 
The Blue and Gold will round out their weekend competition against Cameron University. The teams will meet for the fourth time, with SAU leading the all-time series 2-1. Last time the two squared off, Cameron won the match in dominant fashion by a final score of 4-0. The Aggies finished last year with an 8-10 overall record but have had a successful fall season, seeing Lukas Janousek advance to the ITA Cup quarterfinals and finish ranked #5 overall while also having their doubles pair in Janousek and Santiago Ledesma ranked #12.

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