When it comes to the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Championships, the men's tennis team has never had a chance to visit the final.
???Perhaps hosting the event will finally change that.
???Starting on Thursday, the Buffalo Bulls (7-10, 1-4 MAC) will host the 2009 MAC Men's Tennis Championships at the Ellicott Tennis Center. The hometown team will be the fifth seed in the tournament.
???Buffalo's trip to the MAC Championships has been a bumpy one. After winning seven of their first nine matches, the Bulls lost their last eight matches of the season, four of those being pivotal conference matches.
???In addition, the Bulls, while at home, never had the chance to get used to their surroundings. Due to Buffalo's variable weather, the Bulls have called four Western New York tennis facilities "home" this season.
The Bulls played the UB/Niagara Invite outdoors on their home court at the Ellicott Tennis Center, while they also used their home indoor courts at the Village Glen Tennis Center during the bitter month of February.
In April, the Bulls faced Ball State at the South Towns Tennis Center in Orchard Park on April 3 and played their last regular season matchup against Northern Illinois at the Miller Tennis Center in Williamsville on April 12.
???The Bulls have never tasted anything past the semifinals in the history of being members of the MAC. They have reached the semi-finals in both the 2003-04 and 2004-05 campaigns.
???In every other season, they lost in a quarterfinals matchup.
???Buffalo's competition in the tournament will be difficult. Western Michigan (15-8, 4-0 MAC) has clinched first place in the tournament for the third year in a row, where they have been undefeated regular season champions in conference play each year.
???The battle for the second seed was very competitive. Ball State (11-9, 3-1 MAC), Toledo (16-9, 2-1 MAC) and Northern Illinois (5-7, 1-1 MAC) each tied for second place in the regular season with their conference records. The league's tiebreaker placed Toledo as the second seed, Northern Illinois as the third seed and Ball State as the fourth seed.
???Chicago State (4-10, 0-4 MAC) earned the sixth and final seed.
???The tournament's first match, when the Cardinals and the Bulls will face off, begins on Thursday at 10 a.m. It will then follow with a matchup between the Huskies and the Chicago State Cougars at 2:30 p.m.
???On Friday, the winner of the Ball State/Buffalo match will take on the Broncos at 10 a.m., while the winner of the Northern Illinois/Chicago State match will take on the Toledo Rockets at 2:30 p.m.
???The championship match will take place Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
