Texas Tech University Athletics
Friday, April 27
Austin, Texas
12:00 PM
Texas Tech Athletics
vs
No. 14 Oklahoma
No. 30 Men's Tennis Faces No. 14 Oklahoma at Big 12's
April 26, 2018 | Men's Tennis
The Red Raiders have appeared in the finals of the Big 12 Championships during the last two seasons under Brett Masi.
AUSTIN, Texas – The No. 30 Texas Tech men's tennis team will turn its attention to the Big 12 Championships this weekend hosted by the Texas Tennis Center in Austin.
The Red Raiders (19-9) square off with No. 14 Oklahoma in Friday's quarterfinals with first serve set for approximately noon CT. Links to free live video and live stats can be found on the program's schedule page at www.TexasTech.com with live match updates provided by @TexasTechTennis on Twitter.
Texas Tech was handed a 4-1 loss by the Sooners (18-4) during the regular season meeting on April 8 in Norman. The Red Raiders have won two of the three meetings between the two schools at the Big 12 Championships and notched back-to-back finals appearances at the event under Brett Masi.
"Hopefully, we have a lot of good mojo going down there to Austin," Masi said. "Maybe, some revenge is in order. The last couple of years wanting to do well against a team we might have lost to during the regular season. This year, it's no different. We want to go down and hopefully have a better performance against Oklahoma than we did in Norman. It's about mentally preparing and having those simple talks with the guys on individual things. Then, as a team, how we want to produce out there. It's about staying in shape and keeping their bodies healthy. At this point in the year, I feel the tennis is a side product. Yes, you go out there and try to play your best, but the mental part and your mentality is what you have to be ready for."
Four players have captured double digit wins for the Red Raiders in dual match play. Ilgiz Valiev has produced a 17-8 record sparked by 11 victories on court four. He provided the match-clinching point with a 6-7 (2), 6-2, 6-0 decision over then No. 97 Rodrigo Banzer of Texas.
Connor Curry has tacked on 14 victories and is coming off an impressive week with straight-set victories over then No. 88 Leonardo Telles of Texas and No. 91 Guillermo Nuñez of TCU.
Tommy Mylnikov boosted his ITA ranking by 18 positions up to No. 106 this week. He has faced ranked opponents in his last six outings and dialed up a 6-4, 6-4 win over then No. 74 Harrison Scott of Texas.
Matheus Leite and Artem Kapshuk have tucked away 12 and 10 dual match victories, respectively. Jackson Cobb returned to the lineup and claimed a 6-4, 6-4 over TCU's Eduardo Roldan in the No. 6 spot.
Alex Sendegeya has moved up to the No. 1 position over the last four matches and has come away with a 9-9 dual match mark during his senior season.
Texas Tech has picked up the doubles point in 19 of 28 matches. There have been two occasions where the Red Raiders have won the doubles point but lost the match. Cobb and Sendegeya vaulted to No. 66 in this week's ITA rankings on the strength 6-4 triumph over then No. 8 Banzer and Telles of Texas. The duo held a 5-4 advantage over TCU's fifth-ranked pair when play was stopped.
Oklahoma closed the regular season with a 4-3 comeback road win over Oklahoma State. The Sooners are sparked by Alex Bakshi at No. 32 and Ferran Calvo at No. 60 in the ITA rankings. OU ripped off four singles wins after dropping the doubles point versus Texas Tech in the regular season matchup.
"Confidence is everything," Masi said. "If you know you have someone at each spot one through six in the lineup that can get a win and produce for the team, it makes you feel a lot more comfortable that you don't have all of that pressure on you. That's why I like the doubles point, it's such a big deal. You get that one point early, and it takes pressure off. I think more than anything, the guys are playing better and being more solid and being in those matches will give everybody more confidence going forward. We can play well, we can hang with these teams and everybody has a chance to win at any spot."
Visit www.TexasTech.com for the latest news and information on the men's tennis program. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/TechMensTennis and @TexasTechTennis on Twitter.
The Red Raiders (19-9) square off with No. 14 Oklahoma in Friday's quarterfinals with first serve set for approximately noon CT. Links to free live video and live stats can be found on the program's schedule page at www.TexasTech.com with live match updates provided by @TexasTechTennis on Twitter.
Texas Tech was handed a 4-1 loss by the Sooners (18-4) during the regular season meeting on April 8 in Norman. The Red Raiders have won two of the three meetings between the two schools at the Big 12 Championships and notched back-to-back finals appearances at the event under Brett Masi.
"Hopefully, we have a lot of good mojo going down there to Austin," Masi said. "Maybe, some revenge is in order. The last couple of years wanting to do well against a team we might have lost to during the regular season. This year, it's no different. We want to go down and hopefully have a better performance against Oklahoma than we did in Norman. It's about mentally preparing and having those simple talks with the guys on individual things. Then, as a team, how we want to produce out there. It's about staying in shape and keeping their bodies healthy. At this point in the year, I feel the tennis is a side product. Yes, you go out there and try to play your best, but the mental part and your mentality is what you have to be ready for."
Four players have captured double digit wins for the Red Raiders in dual match play. Ilgiz Valiev has produced a 17-8 record sparked by 11 victories on court four. He provided the match-clinching point with a 6-7 (2), 6-2, 6-0 decision over then No. 97 Rodrigo Banzer of Texas.
Connor Curry has tacked on 14 victories and is coming off an impressive week with straight-set victories over then No. 88 Leonardo Telles of Texas and No. 91 Guillermo Nuñez of TCU.
Tommy Mylnikov boosted his ITA ranking by 18 positions up to No. 106 this week. He has faced ranked opponents in his last six outings and dialed up a 6-4, 6-4 win over then No. 74 Harrison Scott of Texas.
Matheus Leite and Artem Kapshuk have tucked away 12 and 10 dual match victories, respectively. Jackson Cobb returned to the lineup and claimed a 6-4, 6-4 over TCU's Eduardo Roldan in the No. 6 spot.
Alex Sendegeya has moved up to the No. 1 position over the last four matches and has come away with a 9-9 dual match mark during his senior season.
Texas Tech has picked up the doubles point in 19 of 28 matches. There have been two occasions where the Red Raiders have won the doubles point but lost the match. Cobb and Sendegeya vaulted to No. 66 in this week's ITA rankings on the strength 6-4 triumph over then No. 8 Banzer and Telles of Texas. The duo held a 5-4 advantage over TCU's fifth-ranked pair when play was stopped.
Oklahoma closed the regular season with a 4-3 comeback road win over Oklahoma State. The Sooners are sparked by Alex Bakshi at No. 32 and Ferran Calvo at No. 60 in the ITA rankings. OU ripped off four singles wins after dropping the doubles point versus Texas Tech in the regular season matchup.
"Confidence is everything," Masi said. "If you know you have someone at each spot one through six in the lineup that can get a win and produce for the team, it makes you feel a lot more comfortable that you don't have all of that pressure on you. That's why I like the doubles point, it's such a big deal. You get that one point early, and it takes pressure off. I think more than anything, the guys are playing better and being more solid and being in those matches will give everybody more confidence going forward. We can play well, we can hang with these teams and everybody has a chance to win at any spot."
Visit www.TexasTech.com for the latest news and information on the men's tennis program. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/TechMensTennis and @TexasTechTennis on Twitter.
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