AUSTIN, Texas – The Concordia Texas men's tennis team heads to the American Southwest Conference Tournament seeking their first conference championship after an impressive display down the final stretch of the regular season, opening with a first-round matchup against East Texas Baptist on Thursday at 2 p.m.
 
The Tornados have been hot of late, entering the tournament on a four-match winning streak after cruising to a 6-1 victory over St. Thomas in the regular season finale on April 24.
 
In a shortened season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, CTX boasts a 10-4, 4-1 ASC record, earning the second seed in the ASC West Division behind Hardin-Simmons. UT Dallas, the tournament host, sits atop the East Division as the one seed.
 
Fourth-year head coach Luke Helm and his squad are geared up and ready to go, eyeing the tournament with anticipation.
 
"We're excited to get the tournament underway," Helm said. "We've been working all year towards this, and we're thrilled to get a chance to compete for the title. We have a tough road ahead, but we believe we have everything we need to bring home our first-ever conference tournament banner. Now, it's time to go prove it."
 
The Tornados open with a quarterfinal matchup against East Texas Baptist, the three seed from the East Division. The two teams squared off this season in a non-conference match on March 6, and CTX came out on top with a 6-3 victory.
 
Coach Helm and his team are approaching the tournament one match at a time, focusing their efforts on the opening round.
 
"The first match is with a tough and well-coached ETBU squad that we played a tight match with early in the season," Helm said. "So that's what we're focused on and that's what we're looking forward to."
 
In the last ASC Tournament, the Tornados made a run to their first championship match appearance in program history before falling to UT Dallas. Esteban Arredondo, Joshua Bode, and Evan Pena Jr. were part of that record-setting 2019 team as freshmen, and now as juniors they look to lead CTX to its first-ever conference championship.
 
Arredondo put together a stellar junior campaign with a 10-3 singles record, including a perfect 5-0 in ASC play, ranking fourth in the conference with a .889 winning percentage. The Woodlands, Texas native has done damage from multiple spots in the lineup, including a 2-0 record at line one.
 
Bode has spent the most time at line one in singles play for CTX this year, notching a 7-3 record at the top spot and ranking first in the conference in No. 1 singles with a .700 winning percentage. The junior has also teamed up with Arredondo for four wins at line one doubles this year, ranking fourth in the ASC as a duo in the top spot.
 
Pena Jr. enters the tournament on a four-match winning streak in singles play and an impressive 9-4 record overall. The junior has seen action at multiple spots over the course of the season, but most of his decisions have come at line six where he has an impressive record of 3-1.
 
Sophomore Adrian Munguia is another difference maker for the Tornados, entering the tournament with an 8-1 singles record. Munguia dominated ASC competition with a perfect 5-0 record, and he has come out on top in his last six singles matches.
 
Joeri Bregman and Robin Van der Heijden have been a dynamic duo this season, posting a 7-4 record overall and a 3-1 record at line one. The pair will look to continue their winning ways in what will be their first ASC tournament appearance.
 
Concordia Texas will begin their journey on Thursday, going toe-to-toe with East Texas Baptist at 2 p.m. at the UT Dallas Tennis Courts in Richardson, Texas. The winner of that match will advance to the semifinals, where they will face off with the winner of the match between Mary Hardin-Baylor and UT Dallas on Friday.