URBANA, Ill. – The ATP Challenger Tour will make its way to Champaign-Urbana from Nov. 10-17, when Atkins Tennis Center plays host to the Paine Schwartz Champaign Challenger.
Several Fighting Illini men’s tennis student-athletes and alumni will take part in the week-long competition, which will feature both singles and doubles play across eight days of action.
The tournament will be played on the indoor courts inside the Atkins Tennis Center. Qualifying action will begin on Sunday, Nov. 10, with the singles main draw set to begin on Tuesday, Nov. 12. The doubles main draw final is slated for Saturday, Nov. 16, before the competition concludes with the singles main draw final on Nov. 17.
Sunday’s qualifying slate features a combination of eight current Illini student-athletes and Illinois alumni. Lucas Horve will get the tournament underway at 10 a.m. CT, taking on Keegan Smith. Zach Viiala is set to compete in the second match of the day, playing Adam Neff.
Mathis Debru will start his tournament run in the third match of the day, facing against Felix Corwin. The fourth match, which will begin not before 2 p.m. CT, features two current Illini – Tyler Bowers and Karlis Ozolins – squaring off.
Another all-Illini clash will follow, with Gabrielius Guzauskas and Zeke Clark set to go head-to-head. The final match of the day sees Oliver Okonkwo take on Trevor Svajda.
Three Illinois tandems will take part in the doubles main draw, including a pair of current Illini duos and a team of Orange and Blue alumni. Lucas Horve and Oliver Okonkwo, who advanced to the doubles final at the Champaign Challenger in 2023, will face Jay Clarke and Finn Reynolds in the first round. Mathis Debru and Kenta Miyoshi will begin their doubles run with a first-round match against No. 4-seeded Patrick Harper and Mac Kiger. Tyler Bowers and Zach Viiala will square off with No. 3-seeded Trey Hilderbrand and Alex Lawson in their opening-round doubles match.
Kenta Miyoshi, William Mroz, and Jeremy Zhang have secured wild cards in the singles main draw and will begin singles play on Tuesday.
A total of 32 players will compete in the singles main draw, while 16 doubles duos will participate in the doubles main draw.
Media looking to cover the Paine Schwartz Champaign Challenger must check in at the front desk inside the east doors of Atkins…
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