Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowgirls Head West for NCAA Regionals in Los Angeles
May 07, 2013 | Cowgirl Tennis
May 7, 2013
STILLWATER -
Oklahoma State's women's tennis team will travel to Los Angeles, Calif., this weekend to compete in the regional rounds of the NCAA tournament.
The Cowgirls (15-8) will compete as the regional's second seed. The Cowgirls will face No. 39 Long Beach State, the third seed, in the first round on Saturday at 9 a.m. PT. If they win, the Cowgirls will return to face the winner of Saturday afternoon's match between top seed UCLA and fourth-seeded Army on Sunday at noon PT.
Going Dancing
The Cowgirls are appearing in the NCAA tournament for the 15th time in school history and back-to-back times for the first time since the 1990 and 1991 seasons. With a win on Saturday, Oklahoma State could advance in the tournament for the first time since 2001.
Last Time Out
Oklahoma State is coming off an exciting run in the Big 12 tournament that brought the team to the conference championship match for the first time since 2003. After receiving a bye in the first round, the Cowgirls defeated TCU, 4-2, in the second round and knocked off top-seeded Baylor in the conference semifinals. Oklahoma State came up short in the championship match, however, falling to Texas, 4-0.
Cowgirls in the Rankings
The Cowgirl tennis team enters this weekend as the 28th-ranked team in the nation, according to team rankings released by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association last Thursday.
Cowgirl Malika Rose remains in this week's ITA singles rankings, down six spots to No. 69. Rose also appears in the ITA doubles rankings along with teammate Kanyapat Narattana. The Cowgirl duo is up one spot this week to No. 30.
Eyeing the Opponents
Long Beach State, making its ninth appearance in the NCAA tournament, enters the weekend slotted as the 39th-ranked team in the nation. The 49ers finished the regular season with a 21-3 overall record and claimed their third straight Big West title with a 4-1 win over UC Irvine in their conference championship match.
Seventh-ranked UCLA is making their 31st-straight NCAA tournament appearance this season. The Bruins notched a 16-5 record in 2013, after ending the season with a 6-1 loss to crosstown rival USC. UCLA's roster boasts five ranked singles players and three ranked doubles teams.
Making its 13th appearance in the NCAA tournament, Army compiled a 22-6 record this season. The Black Knights defeated Navy in the Patriot League Championship to win their 14th Patriot League title.
Dynamic Duo
The Oklahoma State tennis tandem of Malika Rose and Kanyapat Narattana has received an at-large bid to compete in this year's NCAA individual tennis championships. The pair will compete in the 32-team NCAA doubles draw, and will be the first Cowgirl doubles team to compete in the individual championships since 2002. The NCAA individual championships begin May 22 at the University of Illinois.
Ace in the Classroom
Oklahoma State women's tennis senior C.C. Sardinha has been named to the 2013 first team Academic All-Big 12 tennis team, the league office announced last week. Sardinha was also named to the Academic All-Big 12 tennis team in 2012, making this her second time to receive the honor.
Climbing the Record Books
With her win over Stefanie Tan of TCU, Malika Rose earned her 63rd career singles victory, tying Kate Vasylyeva for seventh place on the program's all-time singles wins list. Rose now sits four wins back from Kate Kolodynska in the sixth spot.
Phenomenal Freshman
With her victory over Iowa State's Ana Gasparovic, Cowgirl freshman Maria Alvarez earned her 20th overall win of the season. Alvarez is the tenth freshman in school history to reach the single-season 20-win mark. In the matches since, Alvarez has racked up three more wins, giving her 23 overall victories on the season and making her the seventh most winning freshman in a single season in school history.
