By Mitch Blankespoor
CLAREMONT, Calif. – Kalamazoo men's tennis freshman Branden Metzler will begin play in the NCAA III Men's Individual Championships Thursday, May 22 against Abhishak Alla of Carnegie Mellon University. The match is scheduled to begin at approximately 11:45 a.m. EST and will be played at the Biszantz Tennis Center on the campus of Claremont-Mudd-Scripts.
Hailing from Rockford, Ill., Metzler fashioned a 16-6 record in singles playing at the top of Kalamazoo's lineup all year. He is ranked No. 4 in the Central Region by itatennis.com. Metzler, the MIAA's Most Valuable Player, has one victory over a player in the field of 32, a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Sabada Deepak of Chicago.
Metzler's opponent, Alla, went 14-7 playing first singles for the Tartans of Carnegie Mellon. Alla is ranked No. 3 in the Atlantic South Division by itatennis.com.
Both teams fell to Case Western Reserve in the NCAA III Men's Tennis Championships. Kalamazoo lost in the regional semifinal while Carnegie Mellon lost in the regional final.
The winner of the match will meet the winner of second-seeded Joey Fritz of Amherst and Skyler Butts of Claremont-Mudd-Scripts.