Men's Tennis to Take on Skidmore in NCAA Tournament First Round
BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The Bridgewater State University men's tennis team will take on No. 24 Skidmore College in the opening round of the 2026 NCAA Division III Tournament. Pairings for the 44-team national tournament were announced on Monday afternoon.
2026 NCAA Division III Men's Tennis Tournament Bracket (PDF)
By Jim Fenton
BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The Bridgewater State University men's tennis team is headed to northern New England again for the NCAA Division III tournament.
The Bears (12-4) will go against 24th-ranked Skidmore College (16-5) of Saratoga Springs, N.Y., in Brunswick, Maine on Friday (May 8).
Bowdoin College is the host team of the six-team bracket.
BSU made its first appearance in the NCAAs in 2024 and traveled to Middlebury, Vt., where it lost to MIT, 5-0.
The Bears gathered at the Tinsley Center Monday afternoon to watch the NCAA Selection Show.
Under the guidance of Head Coach David Purpura (10th Year), BSU won its second Little East Conference championship in three seasons on Saturday over Rhode Island College, 4-3, to earn an automatic bid in the 44-team NCAAs.
The Bears have not lost since the end of March and are on a 10-match winning streak.
The Bears' starting lineup at singles includes freshman Will Horton (Lakeville, Mass.), the LEC Tournament MVP, at No. 1 followed by senior Adam Beatrice (Rockland, Mass.), junior Khiem Nguyen (Burlington, Vt.), junior Tom Ayson (Plymouth, Mass.), junior Anthony Lucas (Weymouth, Mass.) and senior Ryan Hebert (Taunton, Mass.).
The doubles teams are Beatrice and Nguyen at No. 1, Horton and Hebert at No. 2 and Ayson and Lucas at No. 3.
Skidmore received an automatic bid by defeating Vassar College, 4-3, for the Liberty League championship.
Senior Kyle Lundberg (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
The Thoroughbreds went 7-1 in the league and enter the NCAAs with a four-match winning streak.
Skidmore lost to three Massachusetts opponents this season -- Babson College, 5-2, Amherst College, 7-0, and Brandeis University, 5-2. BSU also played Brandeis and lost, 7-0.
The BSU-Skidmore winner will play Babson (15-4) in the second round on Saturday (May 9).
Bowdoin has a bye in the opening round and will go against the winner of a first-round match between Farmingdale State (14-7) and Roger Williams (18-5).