The Basics
Score: No. 1 Denver 4, No. 4 Illinois State 1
Records: No. 1 Denver (17-5), No. 4 Illinois State (9-14)
Location: Michael D. Case Tennis Center

TULSA, Okla. – Top-seeded Denver advanced to the championship match with a 4-1 victory over No. 4 Illinois State in the semifinal round of the 2026 Summit League Men’s Tennis Championship on Friday at Michael D. Case Tennis Center, moving one step closer to its seventh consecutive league title.

The Pioneers dominated doubles play to take an early 1-0 lead, earning decisive wins at the No. 2 and No. 3 positions. Ryoma Mishiro and Samuel Rovai opened with a 6-0 victory over Tin Ostro and Caden Scarlett, followed by Raffaello Papajcik and Aaron Beduhn, who matched the effort with a 6-0 win against Jett Leong and Finn Logue.

Denver carried that momentum into singles action, quickly extending its advantage. Papajcik cruised to a 6-0, 6-3 win over Tomas Valencia at the No. 1 spot to make it 2-0, before Theo Coats added a 7-5, 6-4 victory at No. 3 to push the lead to 3-0.

Illinois State got on the board at No. 4, where Ostro earned a 6-0, 7-6 win over Mishiro to cut the deficit to 3-1. However, Denver quickly closed the door as Beduhn secured the clinching point with a 6-1, 6-7, 6-2 win over Scarlett at No. 6, sealing the 4-1 victory and sending the Pioneers back to the title match.

With the win, Denver continued its dominant run in Summit League postseason play, reaching the championship match for the seventh consecutive season.

Up Next
Denver advances to the Summit League Championship match, where it will look to capture its seventh straight conference title. The Pioneers will face No. 2 North Dakota or No. 3 Oral Roberts in the championship match at 1 p.m. CT at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center.

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