KALAMAZOO, Mich. – On a hot and humid Thursday morning and afternoon, Branden Metzler survived and advanced in the round of 32 and round of 16 at the NCAA Division III Championships.

In Metzler's first match of the day, he defeated Matthew Heinrich of the Stevens Institute of Technology 6-4, 6-4.

After a short break in between matches, Metzler lost his first set in the round of 16 to Daniel Levine of Carnegie Mellon, 3-6.

But with the energy and help from a spirited supporter section, Metzler rallied. He made quick work of the second set winning 6-2.

Down 4-3 in the match's final set, Metzler won the set's final three points and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Metzler will square off with the tournament's No. 1 seed, Noah Farrell of Middlebury, at 9 a.m. Friday.