WHEATON, Ill. - The number two seed Carthage College Firebirds men's tennis team advanced to the 2023 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Men's Tennis Championship Final with a resounding 5-1 victory over the No. 3 Millikin Big Blue this afternoon in Wheaton.

Carthage's only loss to the regionally-ranked Big Blue came at the No. 1 doubles flight in a tiebreaker, while a hard fought win at No. 3 doubles was key in clinching the victory.  Quick victories at the No. 3 (Krzewinski), No. 4 (Ferruzzi), and No. 6 (Czosnyka) singles flights sent Carthage to the final. 

With No. 1 North Central defeating host Wheaton (Ill.), the Cardinals and Firebirds will play in the final for the second year in a row; North Central got the best of Carthage at Smeds Tennis Center last year, winning 5-3. Carthage last won the conference tournament in 2016, which is also the last time the event was hosted by the Thunder. 

North Central and Carthage last played in Carthage's conference opener, which took place on April 1 in Kenosha. North Central defeated Carthage 5-4, losing two out of the three doubles matches while winning high-tension matches at the No. 1 and No. 4 singles flights. 



 

• Final Score: No. 2 Carthage 5, No. 3 Millikin 1
• Location: Wheaton Tennis Courts - Wheaton, Illinois
• Records: Carthage 17-5 (6-1 CCIW), Millikin 16-6 (5-2 CCIW)

Singles Competition 

1. Yanozie Amadike (CAR) vs. Bjorkman, Hasting (MIL) 6-7(4), 1-1, unfinished
2. Francisco Silveira (CAR) vs. Maack, Clayton (MIL) 4-6, 2-0, unfinished
3. Myles Krzewinski (CAR) def. Cardestig, Martin (MIL) 6-0, 6-2
4. Cooper Ferruzzi (CAR) def. Wolf, Theodor (MIL) 6-2, 6-2
5. Luca Okino (CAR) vs. Phillips, Cole (MIL) 6-4, 2-2, unfinished
6. Marco Czosnyka (CAR) def. Laux, Rodrigo (MIL) 6-1, 6-3

Doubles Competition

1. Bjorkman/Cardestig (MIL) def. Amadike/Krzewinski (CAR) 8-7(5)
2. Silveira/Ferruzzi (CAR) def. Maack/Wolf (MIL) 8-2
3. Czosnyka/Jaworski (CAR) def. Laux/Phillips (MIL) 8-7(5)

Order of Finish:

Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (6,3,4)



 

• With the win over No. 3 Millikin, Carthage set up a rematch of last year's CCIW Men's Tennis Championship Final against North Central College. The two heavyweights, and top two seeds, will battle tomorrow in Wheaton. Weather pending, Carthage and North Central would play at 2 p.m. at the Wheaton Tennis Courts.