Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowgirl Tennis Ready For Road Trip
April 13, 2010 | Cowgirl Tennis
April 13, 2010
The Basics
The No. 59 Oklahoma State women's tennis team faces a busy schedule this week, traveling on a three-match road trip to face No. 43 Oklahoma Wednesday at 3 p.m. at the Headington Family Tennis Center in Norman, Okla., Kansas Friday at 2 p.m. at the Jayhawks Tennis Facility in Lawrence, Kan., and Kansas State Sunday at noon at the Wamego Recreation Complex in Wamego, Kan.
About the Cowgirls
Oklahoma State enters the match at 9-7 (2-4) and on a three-match losing streak. The Cowgirls are coming off of losses to Tulsa, Texas A&M and Texas, but defeated Missouri and then-No. 65 Colorado in their two prior matches. OSU also had conference losses to No. 1 Baylor and Texas Tech before defeating CU. The Cowgirls, who had won three consecutive matches over Wichita State, Denver and ORU before their loss to Baylor, are ranked No. 57 in the ITA team rankings. OSU has also beaten No. 49 Utah, 4-3, Saint Louis, 6-1, and Central Oklahoma, 7-0, in 2010.
About the Opponents
Oklahoma is ranked No. 43 in the ITA team rankings and enters the Bedlam match with a 13-4 overall record and a 3-3 mark in Big 12 play. The Sooners have lost two straight matches to Texas A&M and Texas, but won three straight matches prior to those losses. In addition to the team ranking, Ana-Maria Constantinescu is the No. 88 player in the ITA singles rankings, while she and Teona Tsertvadze make up the No. 23 doubles team in the doubles poll. OSU holds a 30-13 all-time series advantage over OU, with the Cowgirls winning the last match in 2009, 4-3.
Kansas enters Friday's match with a record of 9-10 (1-6). The Jayhawks are coming off of a 6-1 loss to Colorado and have lost four consecutive matches. OSU holds a 21-17 all-time series advantage over KU, with the Jayhawks winning the last match in 2009, 4-3.
Kansas State, who plays Oklahoma at 11 a.m. Saturday, enters the weekend with an overall record of 6-9 and a 3-4 mark in Big 12 competition. The Wildcats, who have won three of their last four matches, are coming off of a 5-2 win at Missouri. OSU holds a 32-5 all-time series advantage over KSU, with the Cowgirls winning the last match in 2009, 4-3.
Last Time Out
In Oklahoma State's last competition, the Cowgirls lost a tough match in Stillwater, falling to No. 41 Texas A&M, 6-1, at the DeBois Tennis Complex. OSU claimed a doubles win from Sasha Belova and Malika Rose at the No. 2 spot, as well as a singles win from Sarah Meghoufel at the No. 4 spot, but fell to the Aggies, 6-1. OSU senior Nataliya Shatkovskaya, playing at No. 1 singles for the first time in Big 12 competition this year, where she took Texas A&M's No. 58-ranked Elze Potgieter to a third-set tiebreaker, but fell just short in her upset bid, 4-6, 7-6(5), 1-0(10-4).
Cowgirls in the Rankings
The Cowgirl tennis team made its debut in the 2010 ITA team rankings on Feb. 12, when they received a ranking of No. 73. Oklahoma State has climbed consistently and has been ranked as high as No. 51, which is the Cowgirls' highest ranking since March 2007. In the April 13, edition of the ITA rankings, OSU received the No. 59 spot.
Up Next
After the Cowgirls take on the Wildcats Sunday, they return to Stillwater for the final home stand of 2010, facing Iowa State April 23, and Nebraska April 24. Both matches are scheduled to begin at noon.
Quoting Chris Young
On the matches
“It's a busy week with three road matches, but a great opportunity to move up in the league standings and continue to take positive steps in the building of our program.”
