The Emory men's tennis team will play for the NCAA D-III Championship following a Tuesday victory over Middlebury in the semifinal round.  The No. 3-ranked Eagles won for the 17^th straight time and raised their overall record to 21-2 following a 5-3 decision over the No. 6 Panthers who ended their campaign at 19-7.  The Championships are being held in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and hosted by Kalamazoo College.

Emory held a 2-1 advantage after the doubles portion of the hotly contested match. At No. 3, sophomore Hayden Cassone and freshman Antonio Mora gave the Eagles a quick 1-0 edge after rolling to an 8-3 verdict over Nate Eazor and Andre Xiao, raising their season record to 19-4.  After MC knotted the contest with a similar score at second doubles, Emory's senior duo of Jonathan Jemison and Adrien Bouchet came through with a crucial victory at No. 1, 8-6, over Lubomir Cuba and Peter Martin, breaking the Panther tandem at 6-6 and then holding serve to close out that match. Jemison and Bouchet have been victorious in 27 of 32 outings during the year.

Middlebury evened the score at 2-2 after winning the first singles point at No. 1, but senior James Spaulding put the Eagles back on top after registering a 6-0, 7-5 outcome at No. 6 against Stanley Morris. Freshman Andrew Esses put Emory one point from advancing when he boosted his season record to 22-4 after playing his way to a 6-4, 6-1 triumph vs. Eazor at No. 5.  The Panthers stayed alive after a three-set win at second singles, but Bouchet closed the door on any Middlebury comeback hopes after rallying for a 4-6, 6-0, 6-3 victory  at No. 3, his 22^nd successful result in 25 decisions this season.

The Eagles will meet No. 1-ranked Claremont-Mudd Scripps for the title on Wednesday at 3:00 pm.  CMS, 33-1 on the season, advanced after toppling No. 2 Chicago, 5-1, in the semifinals.  Emory will be shooting for the program's fifth-ever national crown.