ENNIS, Texas – For the third time in five years, the Cameron University men's tennis team is the South Central Regional Champions, beating St. Mary's 4-0 on Tuesday.

The Aggie men made the tournament for the 24th time since 1983 this season, a feat that they have done seven times in the last 10 years (the 2020 tournament was canceled due to the pandemic). They entered the bracket as the top seed in the South Central Region, earning a first-round bye before facing the three-seed Rattlers, who beat the two-seed Midwestern State in the semifinal on Monday.

Cameron and StMU were set to battle at the Arlington Tennis Center on Tuesday afternoon for a chance to play in the Round of Eight but weather forced the move to the Lion Indoor Tennis Center in Ennis, Texas.

Like their previous meeting this season that St. Mary's won 4-3, the Aggies jumped out to an early lead in the match by winning the doubles point. Maycon Dias and Joao Duleba got CU off to a strong start with a 6-0 win on court two. StMU claimed the win on one with Jeremiah Sanchez and James Finagan beating the eighth ranked Oscar del Granado and Bruno Vietri 6-2. The deciding point came at three, where Carlos Vidal and Alvaro Chavez beat their Rattler counterpart 6-3.

The Aggies made quick work of the Rattlers in singles play, which is where the Rattlers won the match during the regular season. Dias beat Ryan Koth 6-1, 6-1 at three to give the Aggies a 2-0 lead, which was followed by a 6-4, 6-3 win by No. 43 del Granado at two. At four, Chavez, who missed the first meeting of these two teams, fell behind with a 6-1 loss in set one, but beat Nicholas Llosa 6-0, 6-2 in the final two games to claim the match and the Regional Championship.

"I'm really proud of the work our guys have done all year," said head Coach Josh Cobble about his championship winning team. "They have been focused all year and have managed to push forward through adversity in a very difficult year. They have been playing as a team all year and keep building on that, which keeps pushing them forward."

Due to the shrunken field this season, it is the first time the Aggies have made the final eight teams since 2015 when they lost to Barry in the national quarterfinals. The CU men have never made it to the Final Four. Cobble believes they have a game changer this year on the coaching staff in graduate assistant Mateus Ceolin.

"Mateus has been a huge asset to the team this year and has proven to be a great coach and leader on and off the court."

The Championship Tournament begins on Tuesday, May 18-20, in Surprise, Ariz. Cameron's opponent and specifics for the match will be released in the coming days.