Men's Tennis Welcomes Eastern Illinois, Lindenwood to Nashville Over Weekend

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Having won five in a row, the Belmont University men's tennis team attempts to extend its winning streak this weekend in the Music City as the Bruins (12-5, 3-0 Horizon) host Eastern Illinois and Lindenwood. Belmont welcomes the Panthers (5-8, 1-2 Horizon) to the Beaman Family Tennis Complex Saturday at 3 p.m. and takes on the Lions (4-5, 1-2 Horizon) Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m.
 
Live scoring of both weekend league matches will be available at BelmontBruins.com.
 
Off to a 3-0 start in Horizon League play, the Bruins were near perfect last week with sweeps of Tennessee State (7-0) and Southern Indiana (4-0) and a key 6-1 road victory at Tennessee Tech last Sunday. Featuring two-time defending Horizon League Doubles Team of the Week graduate student Marko Ilic and junior Riccardo Trione, who have won eight straight at the top doubles spot and are an impressive 13-1 on the season, Belmont has been strong throughout its lineup.
 
Perhaps nobody has been hotter in singles action over the last couple of weeks than sophomore Ian Cruz, who has won five consecutive matches between the third and fourth positions and dropped only six combined games over his last eight sets. Junior Tomas Luis has also been outstanding as of late and owns an 8-1 record between the second and third spots. Fellow junior Alfred Wallin has won six-straight singles matches and is 8-3 on the year at the second flight.
 
The tandem of Ilic and Trione is ranked 76th in the nation with a new set of doubles rankings to be released next week.
 
The Bruins have never lost to Eastern Illinois and defeated the Panthers twice last season, including a 4-0 win in the semifinals of the 2022 Ohio Valley Conference Championship. Belmont also scored a 5-2 triumph at Eastern Illinois last April. After conceding the doubles point, the Bruins took the top three singles courts and got wins at the No. 5 and No. 6 positions.
 
Sunday will be the first-ever meeting between Belmont and Lindenwood with the Lions in their first year of NCAA Division I membership.
 
The Panthers snapped a four-match losing streak last Saturday with a narrow 4-3 home victory over Lindenwood. Eastern Illinois is 2-5 on the road this spring with both wins coming at non-Division I programs. The Panthers opened league play with home losses to Southern Indiana (4-3) and Tennessee Tech (6-1).
 
The Lions face Tennessee State Saturday morning in Nashville before visiting the Bruins Sunday. Lindenwood swept NAIA member Baker University (Kan.) 7-0 at home Monday morning in its last outing and is 0-3 on the road this season. The Lions began conference play in St. Charles, Missouri, with a 7-0 loss to Tennessee Tech before edging Southern Indiana 4-3.
 
Up Next
Belmont makes its second trip in the Horizon League next weekend, traveling to Lindenwood next Friday and heading to Eastern Illinois next Saturday, April 8.
 
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