Charlotte Tennis Set for American Conference Individual Championships
- Four members of the Charlotte men's and women's tennis programs will compete at the American Conference Individual Championships running from October 22 through October 25, 2026, at the...
- Andres Medus and Hiiro Sakamoto represent the Charlotte men's program in both singles and doubles draws.
- Opening-day action on October 22 gets underway at 10:00 a.m.
Four members of the Charlotte men’s and women’s tennis programs will compete at the American Conference Individual Championships running from October 22 through October 25, 2026, at the George R. Brown Tennis Center in Houston, Texas, charlotte49ers.com reported. The tournament features representatives from 11 American Athletic Conference men’s teams and 13 women’s squads, with each school sending two singles players and one doubles tandem.
Charlotte Singles Seeds and Doubles Pairings in Houston
Andres Medus and Hiiro Sakamoto represent the Charlotte men’s program in both singles and doubles draws. Shona Nakano and Amalia Widdowson compete in both brackets for the women’s team. Nakano earned the No. 3 seed in the women’s singles draw, while Medus grabbed the No. 5 seed on the men’s side. Both players earned opening-round byes straight into the Round of 16.
Opening-day action on October 22 gets underway at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time with the Round of 16 in doubles. Nakano and Widdowson face Memphis tandem Mailina Nedderhut and Maria Santos, while Medus and Sakamoto take on UTSA’s Enzo Vargas and Timeo Bretin. Singles play follows later in the morning, with Widdowson meeting Tulsa’s Coral Valle in the Round of 32 at 11:00 a.m. and Sakamoto playing UTSA’s Enzo Vargas at noon. Afternoon Round of 16 singles matches feature Nakano against the winner of the Laia Tarazona Peyro and Leonie Moeller match at 3:00 p.m., followed by Medus facing the winner between Timeo Bretin and Julian Forer at 4:30 p.m.
Championship Format and Advancement to Rome
Singles matches at the tournament are contested as best-of-three sets utilizing no-ad scoring with tiebreaks at six games all. Doubles matches run as eight-game pro sets until the semifinals, which shift to a best-of-three format featuring a 10-point tiebreaker instead of a third set. Champions crowned in both singles and doubles earn automatic qualification to the ITA Conference Masters Championships scheduled for November 5 through November 8, 2026, in Rome, Georgia.
Last year’s tournament produced strong results for the program. Charlotte women’s player Ni Xi captured the singles title without dropping a single set and reached the doubles finals alongside partner Sara Suchankova. On the men’s side, Vasco Prata and Ivan Dreycopp advanced to the doubles championship match before falling to an opponent from Rice.
Tournament Broadcast and Streaming Details
Fans can follow the action throughout the weekend via multiple viewing and tracking options. Playsight provides live video coverage for matches outside of the championship rounds, while iOnCourt supplies live scoring. ESPN+ carries live streams of all championship matches scheduled for Sunday, October 25.