Oklahoma State University Athletics
Year in Review: Cowboy Tennis
May 19, 2006 | Cowboy Tennis
OSU lost their No. 1 and No. 2 singles players to graduation, and one returnee, Daniel Byrnes, was coming off major arm surgery going into the 2005-06 campaign.
Byrnes began the fall season unranked and entered the Central Region Championships unseeded. Byrnes battled through the bracket and met teammate Tomas Bohunicky in the finals. It was the first time in the region's history that two teammates met for the regional title. Byrnes walked away as the region's champion.
After an impressive fall from several Oklahoma State players, the Cowboys started the spring ranked 24th in the country. Oklahoma State played the first five matches of the season away from Stillwater and came away with a 4-1 record. The only blemish on their record was a 5-2 loss to the Miami Hurricanes. Although it was an upset at the time, Miami would later rise to as high as ninth in the country.
The Cowboy made their Stillwater debut special when they upset No. 23 TCU. While the win was nice, the match was also significant because it would be the last match that newcomer Ivan Puchkarov would lose in almost two-and-a-half months. The sophomore would go on to win 15 consecutive individual matches.
Oklahoma State would improve its record to 8-1 before facing a tough task against Colorado. The Buffaloes would have been a tough win no matter the situation, but with news that the program had just been dropped, CU took its game to another level and upset the Cowboys 4-3 in Tulsa.
After experiencing maybe their toughest loss of the season, O-State bounced back and had their best win of the year in the very next match. The 33rd-ranked Pokes traveled to College Station, Texas, to face No. 17 Texas A&M in front of a rowdy Aggie crowd. The Pokes battled and came away with a 4 -3 upset of the Aggies. The match was highlighted by Byrnes' upset of eighth-ranked Jerry Makowski.
Oklahoma State ended the regular season as one of the hottest teams in the country by winning six of its last eight matches. OSU's only losses were close decisions to No. 3 Texas and No. 5 Baylor. The Cowboys collected wins against Tulsa, Texas Tech, SMU, No. 22 Arkansas and a Bedlam victory over Oklahoma.
The Cowboys finished the season 4-3 in Big 12 play and were seeded fourth for the Big 12 Championship in Waco, Texas.
OSU drew No. 18 Texas A&M in the first round in an important national match-up. The winner would likely have the inside track on hosting an NCAA Regional.
The match score was 3-2 with only one singles match remaining, the day's marquee match-up between No. 14 Byrnes and No. 12 Makowski. A Byrnes win would advance Oklahoma State into the Big 12 semifinals. A Makowski win would force the match into double's play.
The two did not disappoint as they pushed the match into a third set. Byrnes, who was not only battling Makowski but also severe back pains, pulled out a clutch win for the Cowboys by taking the third-set tiebreaker.
The task did not get any easier in the second round when the Cowboys faced No. 4 Baylor. Not only would O-State be without senior Felipe Diaz, who was injured against A&M, the Cowboys would be facing a Baylor team who had only lost twice at home twice since 2002.
The win looked close to be impossible after Byrnes had to default his match because of his back pains. After a Baylor win at No. 4 singles, the Cowboys were one loss away from elimination. However, the Pokes were not done and made the night a little uneasy for the Baylor faithful in the crowd. Puchkarov pulled off an upset against Matija Zgaga and Nathan Byrnes got a big win, replacing Diaz in the lineup.
A Cowboy upset looked possible with two matches remaining and both going into a third set. However, the upset wasn't to be as the Pokes dropped a close match at No. 3 singles.
Shortly after the Big 12 Championships, the All-Big 12 teams were announced and Oklahoma State lead the Big 12 with four selections. Byrnes and Puchkarov were unanimous selections, while Tomas Bohunicky made the team for the second straight season. Byrnes and his brother, Nathan, also made the team for their play at No. 1 doubles. Puchkarov was honored as the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year for his outstanding season that included the Big 12 Championship at No. 3 singles.
The Cowboys were also honored by the Central Region for their season. Puchkarov was named Rookie of the Year while Yevgen Bondarchuk was named the region's top assistant coach.
Diaz, Bohunicky and Artie Burmistrau were also recognized for their work in the classroom as all three were named to the Academic All-Big 12 Second Team.
The Pokes were rewarded for their season when the NCAA announced the 2005 NCAA Tournament brackets and the Cowboys were selected as a host school for the second-straight year.
Oklahoma State got past Drake in the first round but faced maybe the toughest second round match up of any host school in this year's tournament. The Cowboys faced the 16th-ranked Florida Gators for the right to advance to the Sweet 16. The Gators, who had been ranked as high as No. 1 in the country, were too much for the Cowboys and downed the Pokes, 4-0.
While the Cowboys fell short of advancing to the Sweet 16, it was still a year to remember for the netters who were supposed to be in a rebuilding year. O-State had two newcomers in the lineup and overcame injuries to Byrnes and Diaz to be ranked as high as 15th, had the top two finishers in the Central Region, had more All-Big 12 selections than any other team and hosted an NCAA Regional for the second straight year.
Of Oklahoma State's six losses in 2006, five came against teams that were ranked in the ITA Top 10 at some point in the season, and only one came in Stillwater.
While the Cowboys need to find replacements for seniors Bohunicky and Diaz, there will not be a lack of talent in Stillwater in 2006-07. The Cowboys return five players with starting experience including Byrnes, who has been invited to the individual NCAA Tournament, and the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year Puchkarov. O-State also returns Burmistrau, who went 16-3 during his junior season; Olexsander Kotsiuk, who was in the lineup all season as a freshman; and Nathan Byrnes, who was an All-Big 12 selection for his play in doubles.
Another thing to look for in 2007: head coach James Wadley, who will be in his 35th year heading the O-State tennis program, will be going for his 600th career win. All of his wins have come at Oklahoma State.
