Men's Tennis | 2/21/2025 10:58:47 AM

MIDDLETOWN, Ohio - The Oakland City Mighty Oaks are the pick to remain on top of the River States Conference in men's tennis, as Oakland City finished first in the 2025 Preseason Coaches' Poll. The poll, announced Friday by the River States Conference office, saw each of the conference's six head coaches rank the other member schools in order of predicted finish.

Oakland City claimed four of the six first place votes from the league's head coaches. The Mighty Oaks have won three straight River States Conference Tournament titles, earning the berth to the national tournament in Mobile, Alabama that comes with it. Oakland City finished atop the RSC standings in the regular season, then swept through the conference tournament with a pair of 4-0 wins to claim the title.

The other two first place votes went to the Eagles of Midway University. Midway placed third in the regular season last year, but knocked off second-seeded Shawnee State in the semifinals to play Oakland City for the conference title for the second year in a row. 

Shawnee State, the regular season runner-up in 2024, was picked third in the poll to round out the top half of the conference. Brescia was placed fourth by the coaches, with Indiana University Southeast coming in fifth and Indiana University East rounding out the poll in sixth.

Conference play in tennis will continue into the month of April, with the conference championships scheduled for April 25 and 26. The championships will again be held in Evansville, Indiana, at the Wesselman Tennis Center.

2025 RSC PRESEASON MEN's TENNIS COACHES POLL
1. Oakland City (23 points, 4 first place votes)
2. Midway (21 points, 2 first place votes)
3. Shawnee State    (16 points)
4. Brescia (15 points)
5. IU Southeast (8 points)
6. IU East (7 points)