RICHMOND, Ky. – With Saturday's 5-2 win over Southern Illinois University Edwardsville at Tom Higgins Courts, the EKU men's tennis team punched its ticket as the No. 2 seed in next week's Ohio Valley Conference Tournament.
 
EKU (18-11, 7-2 OVC) claimed the doubles point after Diego Asis and Guillem Sanchis posted a 6-3 win at No. 3 doubles for their third straight win, putting the Colonels out in front heading into singles action.
 
Wins from Ramon van Flymen, Florian Graskamp and Diogo Soares solidified the EKU win. Senior Alex Álvaro added a 6-2, 6-3 win at the No. 2 spot, extending the margin of victory to 5-2.

"We're really excited to get to the tourney," Head Coach Rob Oertel said. "It's huge to get the bye. Our goal is to win the two matches next weekend and get to the NCAA Tournament and defend our title."
 
EKU has won four regular season OVC titles to go with its four OVC Tournament championships. The Colonels won both titles in 2015.
 
"If everything goes well, I think it can happen for us," Oertel said. "We have the team to do it and we're looking forward to the challenge."
 
The 2016 OVC Tournament will be held at Nashville's Centennial Park.
 
EKU 5, SIUE 2

Singles

1. Ramon van Flymen (EKU) def. No player (SIUE), by default
2. Alex Álvaro (EKU) def. Matthew Hutchinson (SIUE) 6-2, 6-3
3. Patrick Gaffigan (SIUE) def. Guillem Sanchis (EKU) 5-7, 6-3, 1-0 (10-5)
4. Nico Kuehn (SIUE) def. Sebastian Mueller (EKU) 6-3, 6-7, 1-0 (11-9)
5. Diogo Soares (EKU) def. Mike Raymond (SIUE) 6-1, 6-1
6. Florian Graskamp (EKU) def. Jack Desse (SIUE) 6-2, 6-0

Doubles

1. Patrick Gaffigan/Tristan Houle (SIUE) def. Alex Alvaro/Sebastian Mueller (EKU) 6-2
2. Ramon van Flymen/Diogo Soares (EKU) def. Jack Desse/Matthew Hutchinson (SIUE) 6-3
3. Guillem Sanchis/Diego Asis (EKU) def. Nico Kuehn/Mike Raymond (SIUE) 6-3
 
Match Notes:
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,*3); Singles (1,6,*5,2,4,3)