April 7, 2009
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - It will be a battle of the unbeatens in the Big 12 Conference as the No. 12-ranked Texas A&M men's tennis team will be tested on the road by the likes of seventh-ranked Baylor on Wednesday, April 8 with first serve scheduled for 6 p.m. (CT) at the Baylor Tennis Center in Waco, Texas.
The Aggies (12-5, 3-0) and Bears (18-5, 3-0) are currently in a two-way tie for first place in the latest league standings ahead of rival Texas (3-1), Oklahoma (1-3), Texas Tech (0-1), Nebraska (0-2) and Oklahoma State (0-2). Both teams are also on identical seven-match win streaks with three more contests remaining in the Big 12 regular-season title race. A&M climbed two spots to No. 12, while Baylor remained at No. 7 in the Campbell/ITA Collegiate Tennis Team Rankings released on Tuesday.
Despite dropping the doubles point in four of its last seven matches, A&M has relied on a deep singles lineup that has carried the team to victory. Three Aggies, in particular, boast an unbeaten 3-0 mark in league play including sophomore All-American and No. 51-ranked Wil Spencer (Ponce de Leon, Fla.) at No. 3 and freshman Colin Hoover (Victoria, Texas) at No. 6.
Four different players have stepped up and clinched match point for the Aggies in their current winning stretch with senior All-American and No. 19-ranked Conor Pollock (San Antonio, Texas) leading A&M to a 4-3 victory over No. 10 USC on March 19, Krajicek twice against Oklahoma on March 27 and Oklahoma State on March 29, Hoover twice in a 4-3 upset of No. 7 Illinois on March 15 and a 5-2 win over Tulsa on April 1 and junior Marcus Lunt (San Antonio, Texas) on two occasions versus LSU on March 21 and Texas Tech on April 3.
"Right now, we are finding different ways to win," said Texas A&M head coach Steve Denton who also added sophomore newcomer Alexey Grigorov (Moscow, Russia) into the fold in January. "Obviously, we are employing the old adage of taking one match at a time. We can't consider looking past Baylor. They are a very good team. We can't really call it a `rivalry' just yet, because we haven't beaten them. Right now, they are hot and playing their best tennis."
A&M has lost the last four-straight meetings between the two schools and will look to turn the corner. The Aggies are 2-3 against top 10 teams and 5-3 when playing on the road this season. They last beat the then fourth-ranked Bears in a 4-3 thriller at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center in 2006, Pollock's sophomore year at A&M. BU is paced by seventh-ranked Denes Lukacs and No. 44-ranked Jordan Rux in singles. Three of the Bears' five losses of the season have come against common A&M opponents in USC, Illinois and Ohio State.
"It will come down to who executes the best," Denton said. "They play well on their home courts. We will have to play with a lot of energy and enthusiasm and stay positive. There will be some distractions, because it will be loud and there will be a large crowd on hand. Our guys will have to concentrate and block it out. If they can do that, then I feel good about our chances. It will be a fun match and we are really looking forward it."
Live scoring and results will be available on www.baylorbears.com and www.aggieathletics.com.