Oklahoma State University Athletics
No. 16 Cowgirls Welcome Two Regional Rivals To Stillwater In Arkansas And Tulsa
January 30, 2020 | Cowgirl Tennis
Logistics
No. 16 Oklahoma State (5-1, 0-0 Big 12)
vs.
Arkansas (2-1, 0-0 SEC)
Date/Time: Jan. 31, 2020/5 p.m.
Location: Greenwood Tennis Center
No. 16 Oklahoma State (5-1, 0-0 Big 12)
vs.
Tulsa (6-1, 0-0 American)
Date/Time: Feb. 1, 2020/12 p.m.
Location: Greenwood Tennis Center
The Basics
-Â The No. 16 Oklahoma State Cowgirls are hosting Arkansas and Tulsa in Stillwater following their loss in the championship match of the ITA Kickoff last weekend. Arkansas will travel to Stillwater on Friday evening, while OSU will take on Tulsa at noon on Saturday.
- Both matches this weekend have moved times. The match against Arkansas, which was originally scheduled for 6 p.m., will now begin at 5 p.m. so fans and media alike can make it to the Oklahoma State wrestling dual at 7 p.m. in Gallagher-Iba Arena against South Dakota State. Saturday's match against Tulsa was originally scheduled for 2 p.m. but has now been moved to 12 p.m.
- The Cowgirls are 5-1 following the ITA Kickoff. OSU won its first-round matchup against San Diego, but they went up against Ohio State, who was ranked No. 25 at the time, and lost in the championship for their first loss of the season.Â
- The Cowgirls fell six spots in the latest ITA rankings to No. 16 following their loss to Ohio State. The Buckeyes, however, jumped to No. 12 in the ITA rankings that were released on Wednesday.
- Oklahoma State began the season on a five-match win streak. OSU has defeated Wichita State, Abilene Christian, Central Arkansas, Oral Roberts and San Diego this season.
- In the fall, the Cowgirls swept the ITA Central Regional Championships in the fall as Lisa Rioux and Ayumi Miyamoto defeated teammates Dariya Detkovskaya and Bunyawi Thamchaiwat to claim the doubles title. Rioux was crowned the singles champion over Detkovskaya in the tournament as well.
Last Time Out
- The Cowgirls hosted the ITA Kickoff on Jan. 25 & 26 with San Diego, Ohio State and Wake Forest. The Cowgirls swept San Diego in the first round, 4-0.
- No. 17 Ayumi Miyamoto and Lisa Marie Rioux won their doubles match, 7-6(4), over San Diego's Solymar Colling and Maria Tyrina. Bunyawi Thamchaiwat and Lenka Stara won their doubles match, 6-2, over Kati Kukaras and Gemma Garcia. The only doubles loss of the day came for Oklahoma State when Elizabeth Goldsmith and Helena Francati defeated Alana Wolfberg and Dariya Detkovskaya on court three, 6-3.
- In singles, OSU swept San Diego by winning on courts one, two and four. No. 16 Rioux defeated No. 39 Colling, 6-4, 6-2. No. 29 Thamchaiwat won over Gemma Garcia, 6-0, 6-3. Finally, Alana Wolfberg defeated Maria Tyrina, 6-1, 6-3.
- In the championship match against No. 25 Ohio State, Oklahoma State lost in a 4-3 battle. The Cowgirls took the doubles point with wins on court one and two. In singles, Thamchaiwat and Lenka Stara both picked up wins, but the rest of the Cowgirls fell. All but one match in the championship round against Ohio State was decided in three sets.Â
A Look at Arkansas
- Oklahoma State has a deep history with Arkansas and hold a successful 16-5 record. OSU is 8-0 at home against the Razorbacks with three losses coming in Fayetteville, and two losses coming in neutral sites. One of Oklahoma State's five losses came in 2019 when Arkansas won in Fayetteville in a 4-3 battle.Â
- Arkansas' head coach, Courtney Steinbock, spent two seasons as a Cowgirl assistant from 2013-2015. She helped lead the team to a 49-15 record during that span. With Steinbock's help in 2015, OSU finished the season with a 23-6 record and rose as high as No. 8 in the rankings. Steinbock was a finalist for the National Assistant Coach of the Year.
- The Razorbacks are 2-1 this season with wins over Memphis and Arizona. Their first and only loss of the season came in the ITA Kickoff championship to Pepperdine, who is currently ranked sixth in the nation.
- Arkansas is not currently ranked, but they have two women in the singles rankings. Jackie Carr is currently No. 109, while Martina Zerulo is ranked No. 122 in the nation. In doubles, Arkansas has one team ranked in Lauren Alter and Tatum Rice at No. 34.Â
A Look at Tulsa
- Oklahoma State is currently 19-15 entering this weekend's matchup with Tulsa. The Cowgirls' latest win came in 2019 when Tulsa was ranked No. 22 in the nation. OSU won the match in Tulsa, 6-1.Â
- Tulsa is 6-1 on the season, and its only loss came to No. 5 Duke at the ITA Kickoff in Durham, N.C. Tulsa did not pick up a team point in that match against Duke.
- Tulsa has one individual in the latest ITA rankings in Martina Okalova at No. 52. Okalova is also a part of the only ranked doubles team for Tulsa with her partner, Vera Ploner, as they are ranked No. 40 in the nation.
Cowgirl Quick Hits
- With the latest ITA rankings, OSU has now spent 93 consecutive weeks in the ITA top 25. The last time OSU was outside the top 25 was March 18, 2014.
- The Cowgirls have won at least 20 matches in each of the last five seasons. In that span, the Cowgirls have won 118 matches, including 29 wins in the 2015-16 season.
- Head coach Chris Young welcomes five new faces to the team this year in Dariya Detkovskaya, Ayumi Miyamoto, Alana Wolfberg, Ryan Thompson and Lenka Stara, who was added to the team at the beginning of the spring.
Cowgirls in the Rankings
- OSU is slated No. 16 in the 2020 ITA Division I women's rankings.
- Junior Lisa Marie Rioux earned the highest singles ranking of any Cowgirl at No. 16.
- Sophomore Bunyawi Thamchaiwat is ranked No. 29 in singles.
- Ayumi Miyamoto earned herself a spot in the rankings at No. 92.
- OSU boasts two doubles teams in the rankings with No. 17 Ayumi Miyamoto and Lisa Rioux, and No. 39 Dariya Detkovskaya and Bunyawi Thamchaiwat. However, Thamchaiwat has been playing on court two with Lenka Stara to start the spring season, while Dariya Detkovskaya has played more often on court three with Alana Wolfberg when she does play in doubles.
- Oklahoma State is set to take on three of the top 25 teams in the 2020 regular season alone: Pepperdine (6), Texas (7) and UCF (15)
Match Updates
- For updates during matches, follow @CowgirlTennis on Twitter and check okstate.com for post-match results and a recap from the days' action.
Players Mentioned
