NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The fourth-seeded St. Olaf College men's tennis team recorded its first playoff victory since 2014 with a 4-2 win over fifth-seeded Concordia-Moorhead in the quarterfinals of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Playoffs on Tuesday afternoon at Carlson Courts.

After Concordia (7-10) claimed the doubles point, St. Olaf (7-7) battled back in singles by winning four of the five matches to finish, including a pair of three-set victories that secured the four points needed to win under the postseason scoring format. Prior to Tuesday, the Oles' most recent win in the MIAC Playoffs was a 5-2 victory over Carleton College in the 2014 semifinals. The match was St. Olaf's first home match under the current format implemented in 2007.

With the win, St. Olaf advanced to the semifinals for the first time since 2015 and will take on top-seeded and No. 31-ranked Gustavus Adolphus College at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 1 in St. Peter. The postseason meeting will be the fourth between the Oles and Gusties.

St. Olaf's victory was its 18th in the last 19 meetings in the all-time series with Concordia dating back to 2008 but was much closer than the Oles' 7-2 win in the regular season back on Oct. 5. St. Olaf won five of the six singles matches in that match in straight sets, but this time around the Cobbers had a new-look lineup after the addition of a No. 1 singles player – Ryoga Yano – since the fall.

In doubles, St. Olaf put the first point on the board with a 6-2 win from sophomore Marjan Veldic and first year Madden Vanderwerf at the second spot in the duo's second match as a tandem. Concordia grabbed the doubles point, however, with 6-4 victories in the other two matches to carry the advantage into singles.

Vanderwerf and sophomore Cathal Mee gave St. Olaf a 2-1 lead by winning the first two singles matches to finish. Vanderwerf ran his record to 16-3 on the season with a 6-0, 6-4 win at No. 4 singles before Mee recorded his second victory in a row with a 6-4, 6-2 win at No. 5 singles. Isaac Maddock answered for the Cobbers with a straight-set victory at No. 2 singles to even the score at 2-2.

The final three matches on court all went to a decisive third set, which is a full set in the playoffs, rather than a super tiebreaker. First year Lou Smith put the Oles on top by recovering from losing the second set to post a 6-1, 4-6, 6-1 victory at No. 3 singles. Sophomore Ryan Birnesser followed with a 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 win at No. 6 singles to clinch the win, as Birnesser rallied from a break down early in the third set and won the final two games to break a 4-4 tie.

Junior Bogdan Vizoli was one game away from a three-set win at No. 1 singles, leading 6-3, 2-6, 5-3 when the match was pulled off court with the team result determined.