DENVER – MSU Denver's men's and women's tennis teams wrap up the regular season Saturday with a 2 p.m. dual at Colorado Mesa.
 
And though spots in the Pacific West Conference Tournament have been secured, there's still plenty to play for, including seedings for the league tournament and – for the 35^th-ranked Roadrunners men – keeping hopes alive for a potential at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
 
"Obviously everyone is aware that we're going to Arizona (for the PacWest Tournament) next week, but as soon as you start to look past Mesa, that's when you get in trouble," MSU Denver coach Josh Graetz said. "They are our conference rival. It's always tough against them, especially when you're driving four hours to get there. We need to be locked in and ready.
 
"And the seedings can still be affected based on what happens Saturday. For the women, it's very close 7 through 10. We're 7 and Mesa is 10 and that match could be pretty defining."
 
The MSU Denver men are 13-3 overall, 11-3 against Division II opponents and have won nine straight duals. However, since the Roadrunners have been unable to schedule any of the remaining members of the PacWest's top six teams, their strength of schedule has dragged them down to fifth in the PacWest rankings and sixth in the West Region rankings (the West Region and PacWest are comprised of the same teams). Only four teams advance to the NCAA Tournament's West Regional – the PacWest Tournament champion and the three highest remaining teams in the regional rankings.
 
Colorado Mesa is 8-11 for the season, including a 6-1 loss to MSU Denver on April 1, and will not advance to the PacWest Tournament. That makes the Mavericks an unpredictable opponent playing their regular-season finale.
 
"It's their Senior Day, and their guys aren't going to the conference tournament, so there's two ways that could go," Graetz said. "They could come out and play with nothing to lose, or maybe the care factor won't be as high. Regardless, our men need to respect them. Mesa is a talented team 1 through 6 and we're expecting a battle."
 
The Colorado Mesa women (11-11) surprised MSU Denver in a razor-thin 4-3 decision two weeks ago. However, MSU Denver (13-6) bounced back last week with a win over Hawaii-Hilo while Mesa lost to the Vulcans, and that is among the reasons MSU Denver is still ranked seventh in the PacWest and Mesa 10^th.
 
"It was a really disappointing and tough loss, and I know our girls are going to go out there and try to get some revenge," Graetz said. "The match could've definitely gone either way, but Mesa deserved to beat us that day because in the big moments they were better. There will be big moments Saturday and we just need to take them and embrace them."