Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboys Set for UNLV Match and Pacific Coast Doubles
February 27, 2013 | Cowboy Tennis
Feb. 27, 2013
STILLWATER, Okla. -
The No. 62 Oklahoma State men's tennis team will head to California on Thursday to face UNLV and open play at the USTA Pacific Coast Doubles tournament.
OSU (6-3) will begin its West Coast trip with a 12 p.m. CST matchup against UNLV in San Diego. After defeating Florida Atlantic to extend the team's winning streak to five, the Cowboys fell in a thrilling match to Florida Gulf Coast on Feb. 23.
Also on Thursday, several Cowboys will open play in the United States Tennis Association's Pacific Coast Doubles tournament in La Jolla, Calif. The competition, entering its 124th year, pits intercollegiate doubles pairs against teaching professionals, junior players, college coaches and former tour players.
Chris Haworth and Trevor Horstmann will begin their tournament runs on Thursday, while the pairs of Rifat Biktyakov and Matt Campbell, Oleksiy Arovin and Brady Bohrnstedt and Richard Del Nunzio and Denys Pume will all have opening-round matches on Friday.
Coaches Jay Udwadia and Yevgen Bondarchuk will also pair up together in the tournament, marking Udwadia's first career appearance in a Cowboy uniform. Bondarchuk played for OSU from 2002-2004, ranking as high as No. 55 in the ITA rankings and leading the 2003 Cowboys to the NCAA Sweet 16.
For updated results, follow @CowboyTennis on Twitter.
Eyeing the Opposition
After starting at the season with five straight wins, the UNLV Rebels have lost four consecutive matches, with their most recent loss coming at the hands of No. 19 Washington. UNLV (5-4) will also have select players compete in the Pacific Coast Doubles.
OSU is 7-4 all-time against UNLV, and currently rides a three match winning streak against the Rebels. The teams last faced off in 2012, with the Cowboys coming away with a 4-3 victory.
Pacific Coast Doubles Schedule
February 28, 2013 | La Jolla, Calif. | La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club
4 p.m. PST – Chris Haworth/Trevor Horstmann (OSU) vs. Bojan Szumanski/Efe Ustundag (Rice)
5 p.m. PST - Yevgen Bondarchuk/Jay Udwadia (OSU) vs. Skyler Butts/Neel Kotrappa (CMS)
February 29, 2013 | La Jolla, Calif. | La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club
8 a.m. PST - Rifat Biktyakov/Matt Campbell (OSU) vs. Jacob Behal/Tyler Droll (Furman)
9:30 a.m. PST – Oleksiy Arovin/Brady Bohrnstedt (OSU) vs. Michael Meyer/Eric Steidlmayer (UC-Davis)
10:30 a.m. PST – Richard Del Nunzio/Denys Pume (OSU) vs. Greg Bayane/Tyler Browne (CAL)
Cowboys in the Rankings
Oklahoma State's men's tennis team moved into the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's national team rankings this week for the first time in 2013 at No. 62. The No. 62 ranking is the squad's highest ranking since a No. 50 spot in the Feb. 22, 2011 polls.
International Influx
Much of the Cowboys' early season success can be attributed to the team's sizeable amount of international players recruited by Jay Udwadia and Yevgen Bondarchuk.
Those internationals include three Cowboy newcomers who have helped the Cowboys match their best start since 2009.
- Oleksiy Arovin (Ukraine): 3-1 singles record at No. 6…4-1 doubles record at No. 3 with Brady Bohrnstedt…Joined the Cowboys this year after previously playing at Donetsk National University in Ukraine.
- Rifat Biktyakov (Uzbekistan): 2-1 singles record at No. 1…4-1 doubles record at Nos. 1 and 2 with Matt Campbell…Recorded match-winning victory against Nebraska…Has accumulated a 40-31 overall singles record in four years with Oklahoma State.
- Matt Campbell (Australia): 3-5 singles record at Nos. 3, 4 and 5…5-1 doubles record at Nos. 1 and 2…Joined OSU after reaching the JUCO national championship with Tyler Junior College in 2011 and 2012.
- Denys Pume (Ukraine): 5-4 singles record at Nos. 2, 3 and 4…6-0 doubles record at Nos. 1 and 2.
Doubles Domination
In eight of nine matches this season, the Cowboys have gained an early lead by winning each match's doubles point. After being swept in the season opener by 19th-ranked Tennessee, the Cowboys have won 16 straight doubles matches. The biggest contributors to that category are Denys Pume and Richard Del Nunzio, who have achieved an undefeated 5-0 record together in doubles play.
Reversing a Trend
Oklahoma State, coming off a 7-14 year, is looking to earn the team's first winning season since 2009. Before the 2009 season, the Cowboys hadn't had a losing season since 1999.
The squad finished off its fall season with a combined individual singles record of 17-19, highlighted by Biktyakov's championship run at the Larry Easley Memorial Classic. The Cowboys currently sit at 6-3.
