April 3, 2009
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The No. 33 Texas A&M women's tennis team puts its five-match winning streak on the line as the Aggies host a pair of Big 12 Conference matches this weekend at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center. The Aggies take on Missouri on Saturday and then face a hot streaking Colorado team on Sunday. The Missouri match begins at noon, and the Colorado match has been changed to a 1 p.m. start time.
"This is going to be a big weekend for us," A&M coach Bobby Kleinecke said. "Both of these teams coming in are dangerous good teams, and they've had some good wins this year. It is going to be important for us to establish ourselves at the beginning of the match and continue it all the way through to the last ball."
The Aggies improved to 9-6 overall and are in fourth place in the Big 12 with a 5-1 mark after defeating both Nebraska and Iowa State on the road last weekend. Their five-match winning streak is the longest since A&M won eight consecutive matches in 2007.
Missouri (7-7, 3-3 Big 12) dropped into a tie with Kansas for fifth place in the Big 12 after losing its last two matches, including a 7-0 setback to No. 4 Baylor in the Tigers' most recent outing.
No. 53 Colorado is 9-5 overall and off to a school-best 5-0 start in Big 12 play entering a battle against conference leader Texas (10-5, 6-0 Big 12) today in Austin. Last week, CU defeated No. 68 Texas Tech, 6-1, to go undefeated in the month of March for the first time in school history. The Buffs have not lost since February 28, when they suffered a shutout at Denver, a team A&M defeated, 4-3, in the Aggies' season opener.
A&M is led by reigning Big 12 Player of the Week Morgan Frank, who is ranked No. 112 in the nation in singles and is riding a team-best six-match winning streak. The sophomore from Oldsmar, Fla., is 6-0 in Big 12 singles matches, all at the No. 2 line.
"Morgan has been kind of the backbone of the team this year," Kleinecke said. "She's been a leader on the court. It is important for us to not totally depend on her and for her to also step up and keep the team on her shoulders and keep progressing."
Sophomore Christi Liles and freshman Sheri Olivier also have gotten into a groove lately and enter the weekend riding four-match winning streaks in singles. Liles is 4-1 in league matches at No. 3, and Olivier is 4-1 in conference play, including 3-0 at No. 6.
"Christi has been really playing a lot better in these last few weeks, and that's been a big help to the team," Kleinecke said. "Sheri also has really played some good matches for us and adds that strength at the bottom part of the lineup in the singles, as well as doubles. She is pretty aggressive and that has been a big key."
Olivier and partner Elzé Potgieter are 5-1 in conference play after winning their last five doubles matches at No. 3. They are tied for the team's longest winning streak with Frank and Liles, who are 5-1 in Big 12 matches at the No. 2 position.
Although the Aggies have won the doubles point in 11 of 14 matches, Kleinecke expects to make some changes in the lineup in hopes of bolstering the lineup even more.
"We've struggled at No. 1 doubles, but we have been very, very steady at No. 2 and 3 doubles," he said. "We are going to make a switch this weekend, and hopefully that is going to turn out good for us. We want to have a chance to win at all three spots."
A&M owns a 14-1 record in the all-time series against the Tigers and has won the last six matches against Missouri. Last year, A&M defeated Missouri, 5-2, in Columbia, Mo. The Tigers' only victory against the Aggies was in 2003 in Columbia, Mo.
A&M is 11-2 all-time against Colorado and is riding a 10-match winning streak against the Buffs. Last year, A&M narrowly defeated CU, 4-3, at the indoor courts in Boulder, Colo. The match was decided in the last match standing, with Frank clinching the winning point by defeating Melisa Esposito, 6-3, 6-1 at the No. 5 singles line.
With only one A&M home match remaining after this weekend - against No. 4 Baylor on April 15 -Kleinecke hopes fans will take advantage of the opportunity to watch some good tennis and enjoy the warm sunshine forecast for Saturday and Sunday.
"The weather is getting warmer, and it is going to be a great weekend of Big 12 tennis," Kleinecke said. "Hopefully everybody will come out and watch, show their support and make for a fun atmosphere."
Live scoring and video streaming of the matches will be available at AggieAthletics.com.
2009 NCAA Tennis Championships: Texas A&M will host the 2009 NCAA Division I Men's and Women's Tennis Championships, May 14-25, at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center in College Station, Texas. Tickets can be purchased online at 12ManFoundation.com or by calling 1-888-99-AGGIE.