ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla.—The Embry-Riddle men's tennis team continued to make program history on Wednesday. The fifth-seeded Eagles (19-5) downed No. 12 Southern Arkansas (20-5) 4-1 to advance to the round of eight at the 2022 NCAA II National Championships.
 
"We're really happy to win," ERAU super senior Juan Ortiz Couder said. "We started off a little bit nervous but as soon as we shook the nerves off, we started playing our tennis. There were a lot of momentum shifts, but we were able to endure them and come out on top."
 
Ranked No. 23 in doubles, Ortiz Couder and Andres Donayre were the first to register a win for the Eagles, toppling the 10th-ranked SAU team of Sander Jans and Marko Nikoliuk 6-2 at No. 1 doubles. The next match off the court was at the third doubles spot where Alexis Guedy and Michele Iftimie downed Ole Valkyser and Matthew Tennant 6-3 to secure the doubles point.
 
Playing on court six Fernando Alonso dominated Sofiane Bah from the first serve and defeated the SAU junior 6-2, 6-2 to put the Eagles up 2-0.
 
While the Muleriders were able to pull out first set wins on courts three and five, the Eagles took the first sets on the remaining three courts. At the second position, 11th-ranked Guedy also notched a straight-set victory, downing No. 58 Stuart Rehfuss 6-3, 6-3 to make it 3-0 in favor of ERAU.
 
At the top spot, No. 5 Ortiz Couder won the first set 6-4, but fell behind by a break, 4-1, in the second. Ortiz Couder then registered a pair of breaks and three holds to outscore Jans 6-1 in the final seven games and seal the win for the Eagles.
 
Wednesday's win sets up a rematch against fourth-seeded Wayne State in the Elite Eight at noon on Thursday. The Eagles will be looking to avenge a 4-3 loss to the Warriors on March 14.