Texas Tech University Athletics
Tech Netters Set for Big 12 Championships
April 23, 2008 | Men's Tennis
April 23, 2008
LUBBOCK, Texas - After a strong regular season conference campaign, the Texas Tech Men's Tennis Team next travels to College Station, Texas, for the 2008 Big 12 Championships. Despite edging their first round opponent earlier this season, the fourth-seeded Raiders know they will have their work cut out for them as they face host Texas A&M Aggies at 3 p.m. on Fri., April 25, at 3 p.m.
The Red Raiders 2008 season thus far has earned national recognition as the team is ranked No. 16 in the latest ITA/Fila poll for the second straight week, the highest ranking this season. Tech is 19-4 in dual matches, 4-2 in conference, and has maintained a 12-4 record on the road. Tech's two biggest home wins came in dramatic fashion as junior Michael Breler clinched the 4-3 win over rival Texas A&M at home, and senior Bojan Szumanski helped his team get its biggest win in program history over a ranked opponent by defeating then-ranked No. 4 Texas, 4-3.
Over the years the Big 12 Conference continues to be one of the premier conferences in college tennis, as six of the seven men's programs fall among the top 75 teams in the nation, with the same six all making appearances in the 2007 NCAA Tournament. The league is comprised of No. 11 Baylor, Nebraska, No. 72 Oklahoma, No. 20 Oklahoma State, No. 6 Texas, and No. 16 Texas Tech. After a very close race, Texas and Baylor shared the regular season title with a record of 5-1, narrowly ahead of Tech and Oklahoma State which tied for second at 4-2.
The Red Raiders have established themselves as a force to be reckoned with in both singles and doubles competition. Tech had two top 11-ranked doubles teams in the preseason poll, and has managed to keep both duos nationally ranked throughout the season. Tech's top team is Szumanski and Christian Rojmar, currently ranked No. 14, who hold a 3-3 conference record, 11-6 overall. The duo of Breler and Sinisa Markovic fell to No. 60 after a series of tough Big 12 opponents, and also split at 3-3 in conference, 11-6 overall. Claiming the Big 12 doubles title at the No. 3 spot for the Raiders is the senior duo of Ilya Babinciuc and Lenoir Ramos. The two suffered its only conference loss at No. 3 to Baylor's Dominik Mueller and Jordan Rux, putting their season record to 7-2 overall.
Tech's singles line-up this season is as solid as they come. No. 37 Szumanski continues to lead his team at No. 1 with a record of 14-7, defeating six ranked opponents and contributing three clinching wins for the Raiders. Playing No. 2 this season is the hard-hitting Markovic whose 17-4 record put his ranked No. 107 in singles. He is 5-1 in conference, narrowly missing his second perfect Big 12 season with a loss last weekend to No. 12 Mueller (BU). Moving into the No. 3 and 4 positions for the Raiders are a pair of senior transfers Ramos and Babinciuc, respectively. Ramos has tabbed in a 13-9 duals record at No. 3, 4-2 in the Big 12, and has defeated three ranked opponents this season. Babinciuc is 26-13 in both the fall and spring combined, placing himself in Tech's record books in a six-way tie for first in singles season singles victories. Polishing off the bottom half of the line-up is junior, Sweden-natives Rojmar and Breler. Rojmar has a 16-6 combined record at No. 4, 5 and 6, 13-5 at No. 5 alone. Breler claimed the Big 12 title at the No. 6 position by going undefeated at 6-0, holding an impressive season record of 17-1.
The Aggies enter the match as the fifth seed with a record of 11-10, 2-4 in conference play. The team is led by junior Connor Pollock who is currently ranked No. 21 nationally. Tech took a 4-3 win over A&M earlier this season at home, but still trail in the series 36-6 all-time.
Live updates will be available for Friday's match via the following link, http://www.aggieathletics.com/specialsites/2008big12tennis/. For more information and a complete bracket of this year's conference championships, visit the men's tennis page at www.big12sports.com.
Players Mentioned
