Middle Tennessee men’s and women’s tennis teams are set to host the Conference USA tournament from April 15-19th in Murfreesboro, Tennessee with both teams carrying very different momentum entering the weekend.
Men’s team look for 7th consecutive CUSA title
The MTSU men’s team enters the upcoming tournament with a record of 20-8 on the season, highlighted by a dominant record of 19-3 at home.
That success has established the Blue Raiders as the team to beat once again in Conference USA, as MTSU looks to extend its streak of six consecutive conference championships.
Despite the sustained dominance in CUSA play, head coach Jimmy Borendame isn’t approaching the postseason lightly.
“I feel like I’ve got a target on my back every day,” Borendame said.
Even with returning standout players like Ondrej Horak and Kareem Al-Amin leading the lineup, this year’s roster looks significantly different from the one that captured last season’s title.
The 2026 squad features four new transfers and four freshmen, marking plenty of new additions for the Blue Raiders.
“There’s eight out of 10 new guys on this team,” Borendame said. “So there’s only two that were on the team last year. So it’s not really a repeat. It’s a whole new entity. That’s how I talk about it with the guys.”
For Horak, the only player on the current roster to play four years under Borendame, the pressure of keeping the championship streak alive is familiar territory. Rather than focusing on repeating, he views the conference tournament as a stepping stone towards a larger goal.
“For me personally, I don’t feel any pressure,” Horak said. “I don’t know. I got used to it. For me, this is already four years of winning conference. It became… I don’t want to say normal, but the goal is to make Sweet 16, so this is part of it, part of the journey. And yeah, we’ve got to still work hard for it and fight. It’s not going to be easy.”
The men’s team will play the winner of Kennesaw State University and University of Delaware on Saturday at 1 p.m. CDT.
Women’s team seeking breakthrough
On the women’s side, MTSU enters the tournament looking to build momentum after a challenging 7-14 season.
The Blue Raiders closed out regular season play with a 5-2 senior night victory over Eastern Kentucky University, a win that could provide a late boost in confidence heading into the CUSA tournament.
“I think this win is definitely going to help us going into the conference,” senior Zenn Lim said. “We haven’t been doing really well in the season, but I think with a win going into conference, I think the girls and everyone will be much more confident, more brave in their shots.”
The Blue Raiders struggled in conference play, finishing 1-6, with their lone victory coming over New Mexico State. Despite this, the team remains motivated by the opportunity to defy the odds.
“We’re going to show our rivals how much we want this win and how much we want to get this ring,” Lim said. “I think MTSU women’s tennis haven’t gotten a ring before, so we’re chasing after this.”
Head coach Tayo Bailey-Duvall emphasized the importance of resilience as the team prepares to enter postseason play.
“To finish up the season on a win is big,” Bailey-Duvall said. “We’ve had a rough year. We’ve had a lot of close matches that didn’t go our way. A few injuries started to come and linger. And for them to show some grit, be coachable, and pull out the fight and win is really big for them today, especially going into conference next week.”
The women’s team plays New Mexico State on Wednesday at 1 p.m.
The tournament will be hosted in Murfreesboro at the Outdoor Tennis Center on the campus of MTSU and the Adams Tennis Complex. The Blue Raiders look to take full advantage of their home courts as they aim for success on both sides of the tournament.
“You have your home crowd there,” Bailey-Duvall said. “You have your administration there. Everyone’s got their eyes on you and the expectation is when you’re home is you have the home court advantage and that you have a greater chance of winning. So there is a little bit more pressure on you.”
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