Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboys Ready For Return to John Breaux Cajun Tennis Classic
September 21, 2017 | Cowboy Tennis
STILLWATER – The Oklahoma State men's tennis team will compete in its second event of the fall season this weekend, as the Cowboys head to Lafayette, Louisiana to once again compete in the John Breaux Cajun Tennis Classic.
The event includes seven teams that finished in the 2016-17 Oracle/ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings national rankings. OSU will kick off the tournament with doubles play beginning at 8:30 a.m. CST and singles at 9:30 a.m. CST.
Cowboy Lineup
The Cowboys are expected to field a very strong lineup for this weekend's event, as Tristan Meraut, Artur Dubinski, Maxim Tybar and Eleftherios Theodorou are all slated to compete.
Match Updates
For updates during matches, you can view live stats through the link on the schedule and then check okstate.com for post-match results and a recap from the day's action.
Oklahoma State From a Distance
Oklahoma State returns five strong veterans from a season that saw the Cowboys host an NCAA Regional. The Cowboys racked up 22 wins, the most under head coach Jay Udwadia and 11 of those wins came against ranked opponents
The OSU roster is headlined by two-time All-American Julian Cash, who was victorious in singles play on 18 occasions last season.
Cash enters his senior campaign looking to solidify himself as one of OSU's most successful competitors. Also returning for the Cowboys are seniors Jurence Mendoza and Tristan Meraut, junior Artur Dubinski and sophomore Mathieu Scaglia. All five figure to be integral parts of OSU getting back to and making another run in the NCAA Tournament this year.
Head coach Jay Udwadia enters his sixth season in charge of the Cowboys and along side him will be second-year assistant coach Marek Michalicka
Eyeing The Opponents
The Cowboys will be joined in Louisiana by teams from across the country, including Big 12-rivals Texas and Texas Tech. Other schools competing at the event include Southeastern Conference members LSU (No. 61) and Kentucky (No. 29), South Florida (No. 23), Georgia State (No. 42) as well as the host school, Louisiana-Lafayette.
Four of the teams competing in the Cajun Classic finished last season ranked in the top 30 of the ITA's final team standings. Finishing last year at No. 15, Oklahoma State is the second-highest ranked team in the event, surpassed only by Texas, which finished No. 11 in the ITA Team Rankings.
Notable Streaks and Trends
The Cowboys have won at least 15 matches in each of the last three seasons under head coach Jay Udwadia. Three times during that stretch OSU has hit the 20-win mark, winning 22 in 2014, 20 in 2016 and 22 in 2017.
Since 2013, the Cowboys have made four-straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament, including advancing to the Round of 16 in 2016 season. That streak is the second longest in program history, trailing only a seven-year streak from 2003-09 that saw the Cowboys reach the tournament in each season.
Fall Outlook
The Cowboys have a packed 2017 fall season that includes some of collegiate tennis' toughest competition, which began with the sixth annual Silverado Resort and Spa's College Tennis Invitational two weeks ago. OSU sent four players, including freshman Maxim Tybar, Luke Hammond and Brady Draheim where they took home the title. Tybar was one of the bright spots of the event as the Belarus native was perfect in his first collegiate singles action, going a perfect 3-0 during the event.
OSU once again competes in the John Breaux Cajun Tennis Classic this season after finding success at the event in recent years. The Cowboys' schedule only ramps up from there as they will then make the short road trip to Tulsa, Oklahoma for the ITA All-American Championships, which begin on September 30.
After another road trip to Houston, Texas for the F33 Futures event, OSU will travel to Minneapolis to compete in the ITA Central Regional starting on October 19. Nearing the end, OSU will complete in the Charlottesville Challenger starting October 28. The Cowboys will conclude fall action at the ITA National Indoor Championships in Indian Wells, California, which takes place the first weekend of November.
Cowboys In The ITA Rankings
The Oklahoma State Men's Tennis team captured two impressive spots in the ITA Preseason Rankings released on Tuesday. Julian Cash was ranked as the No. 18 singles player in the nation. Maxim Tybar was ranked the No. 10 Freshman/Newcomer.
The preseason singles rankings also feature the new OSU doubles tandem of Cash and freshman Luke Hammond at No. 25 and senior Tristan Meraut at No. 112 in singles.
Tybar In The Spotlight
The 2017-18 Cowboys are all about stepping into key roles left vacant by last seasons' seniors, a young member of the OSU roster, Maxim Tybar, has shown already that age is just a number. Rated as one of the top-10 Newcomers by the ITA, this Cowboy has a bright season ahead of him.
Tybar rolled through his first collegiate competition as he picked up three-straight singles wins at the event. His talent is evident and he will have the opportunity to break into an OSU lineup that returns three starters.
The event includes seven teams that finished in the 2016-17 Oracle/ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings national rankings. OSU will kick off the tournament with doubles play beginning at 8:30 a.m. CST and singles at 9:30 a.m. CST.
Cowboy Lineup
The Cowboys are expected to field a very strong lineup for this weekend's event, as Tristan Meraut, Artur Dubinski, Maxim Tybar and Eleftherios Theodorou are all slated to compete.
Match Updates
For updates during matches, you can view live stats through the link on the schedule and then check okstate.com for post-match results and a recap from the day's action.
Oklahoma State From a Distance
Oklahoma State returns five strong veterans from a season that saw the Cowboys host an NCAA Regional. The Cowboys racked up 22 wins, the most under head coach Jay Udwadia and 11 of those wins came against ranked opponents
The OSU roster is headlined by two-time All-American Julian Cash, who was victorious in singles play on 18 occasions last season.
Cash enters his senior campaign looking to solidify himself as one of OSU's most successful competitors. Also returning for the Cowboys are seniors Jurence Mendoza and Tristan Meraut, junior Artur Dubinski and sophomore Mathieu Scaglia. All five figure to be integral parts of OSU getting back to and making another run in the NCAA Tournament this year.
Head coach Jay Udwadia enters his sixth season in charge of the Cowboys and along side him will be second-year assistant coach Marek Michalicka
Eyeing The Opponents
The Cowboys will be joined in Louisiana by teams from across the country, including Big 12-rivals Texas and Texas Tech. Other schools competing at the event include Southeastern Conference members LSU (No. 61) and Kentucky (No. 29), South Florida (No. 23), Georgia State (No. 42) as well as the host school, Louisiana-Lafayette.
Four of the teams competing in the Cajun Classic finished last season ranked in the top 30 of the ITA's final team standings. Finishing last year at No. 15, Oklahoma State is the second-highest ranked team in the event, surpassed only by Texas, which finished No. 11 in the ITA Team Rankings.
Notable Streaks and Trends
The Cowboys have won at least 15 matches in each of the last three seasons under head coach Jay Udwadia. Three times during that stretch OSU has hit the 20-win mark, winning 22 in 2014, 20 in 2016 and 22 in 2017.
Since 2013, the Cowboys have made four-straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament, including advancing to the Round of 16 in 2016 season. That streak is the second longest in program history, trailing only a seven-year streak from 2003-09 that saw the Cowboys reach the tournament in each season.
Fall Outlook
The Cowboys have a packed 2017 fall season that includes some of collegiate tennis' toughest competition, which began with the sixth annual Silverado Resort and Spa's College Tennis Invitational two weeks ago. OSU sent four players, including freshman Maxim Tybar, Luke Hammond and Brady Draheim where they took home the title. Tybar was one of the bright spots of the event as the Belarus native was perfect in his first collegiate singles action, going a perfect 3-0 during the event.
OSU once again competes in the John Breaux Cajun Tennis Classic this season after finding success at the event in recent years. The Cowboys' schedule only ramps up from there as they will then make the short road trip to Tulsa, Oklahoma for the ITA All-American Championships, which begin on September 30.
After another road trip to Houston, Texas for the F33 Futures event, OSU will travel to Minneapolis to compete in the ITA Central Regional starting on October 19. Nearing the end, OSU will complete in the Charlottesville Challenger starting October 28. The Cowboys will conclude fall action at the ITA National Indoor Championships in Indian Wells, California, which takes place the first weekend of November.
Cowboys In The ITA Rankings
The Oklahoma State Men's Tennis team captured two impressive spots in the ITA Preseason Rankings released on Tuesday. Julian Cash was ranked as the No. 18 singles player in the nation. Maxim Tybar was ranked the No. 10 Freshman/Newcomer.
The preseason singles rankings also feature the new OSU doubles tandem of Cash and freshman Luke Hammond at No. 25 and senior Tristan Meraut at No. 112 in singles.
Tybar In The Spotlight
The 2017-18 Cowboys are all about stepping into key roles left vacant by last seasons' seniors, a young member of the OSU roster, Maxim Tybar, has shown already that age is just a number. Rated as one of the top-10 Newcomers by the ITA, this Cowboy has a bright season ahead of him.
Tybar rolled through his first collegiate competition as he picked up three-straight singles wins at the event. His talent is evident and he will have the opportunity to break into an OSU lineup that returns three starters.
Players Mentioned
/ Cowboy Tennis
/ Cowboy Tennis
/ Cowboy Tennis
/ Cowboy Tennis
/ Cowboy Tennis
Tuesday, July 07
Tuesday, July 07
Friday, June 05
Friday, May 29
