DES MOINES, IOWA -- The Drake men's tennis team travels to Tulsa, Okla., to compete in the ITA  Central Regional this Thursday through Monday (Oct. 22-26).The five-day event is hosted by the University of Tulsa.

After the regional, Drake will be idle until opening the spring season Jan. 22-24 hosting the State Farm MVC Individuals at the Roger Knapp Tennis Center.

LAST YEAR: Drake came up just short of playing for a pair of singles titles at the ITA Central Regional as then seniors Maor Zirkin and Ivan Mendoza both fell in semifinal matches.

Down 4-1 in the third set of the main draw quarterfinal action, Zirkin rallied to knock off Calin Paar of Nebraska, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, to advance to the semifinals.  With just over an hour's rest between matches, Zirkin was forced to quickly regroup before squaring off against Matt Hogan of Arkansas.  Hogan got the better of Zirkin in the affair, posting a, 6-3, 6-4, decision.

Mendoza collected a three-set triumph of his own in the quarterfinals of the consolation draw, bettering Blake Boswell of Oklahoma, 6-4, 4-6, 6-0, before Ken Nordheim of Saint Louis ended his tournament run with a 6-3, 6-2 victory.