Tennis Team Set To Face Two Top-30 Teams This Weekend
Apr 16, 2003 | Tennis
April 16, 2003
MANHATTAN, Kan. - The Kansas State tennis team tries to extend its five-match winning streak and keep pace in the Big 12 Conference race when it closes its regular season with a pair of matches against Texas A&M and Texas this weekend. The 36th-ranked Wildcats begin the weekend hosting No. 35 Texas A&M at 2 p.m. Friday at the Washburn Tennis Facility on the K-State campus. The 'Cats then play their final home match of the year at 10 a.m. Sunday against No. 32 Texas. Should weather be a problem, the matches could be played indoors at Ahearn Field House.
This weekend's matches are the final regular-season home matches for senior Petra Sedlmajerova.
K-State is 11-4 overall and 6-2 in the Big 12 this season. Texas A&M has a 15-9 overall record and 7-2 mark in the league. Texas sports a 9-12 overall mark and 7-2 league record.
Kansas State enters this weekend having won its last five matches dating to March 19. A win on Friday would match the Wildcats' six-match winning streak in 2001. K-State extended its streak with a 5-2 win over in-state rival Kansas April 12, but had its match with Nebraska Tuesday postponed. Texas A&M has won two of its last three matches, including a thrilling 4-3 victory over Texas Tuesday. The Longhorns are on a two-match skid, falling to the Aggies and then-No. 11 William & Mary, 5-2, April 13.
In both series, the Wildcats are winless. They are 0-5 vs. the Aggies and 0-6 against the Longhorns. K-State lost both road matches played in College Station and Austin last year by matching 5-2 scores. In the last matches played in Manhattan in 2001, Kansas State came close to a pair of victories, but lost 4-3 to both A&M and UT.
For the Wildcats, reigning Big 12 Player of the Week Hayley McIver, one of the hottest singles players in the conference, has strung together six consecutive wins and victories in nine of her last 10 matches playing primarily at No. 5 singles. The junior is 11-3 in dual matches, 7-1 in the Big 12 and 20-9 overall. On April 12, the left-hander became the first Wildcat to win 20 matches in a single season since Alena Jecminkova, Petra Sedlmajerova and Eva Novotna reached the milestone in 2001.
Freshman Andrea Cooper has also put together wins in seven of her last eight matches. She is 10-3 in dual matches, 5-2 in the Big 12 and 16-9 overall this season playing primarily at No. 6 singles.
Kansas State has improved its doubles play recently, winning nine of its last 12 matches. Leading the way for K-State are Sedlmajerova and junior Paulina Castillejos, who have won five of their last six matches. The Wildcats' No. 1 doubles team is 8-3 in dual matches, 4-4 in the league and 10-5 overall.
Texas A&M is led by junior Jessica Roland. The Aggies' No. 1 singles player is 20-13 overall, 15-8 in dual matches, 6-3 in the Big 12 and ranked No. 100 in the last Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings. She teams with classmate Roberta Spencer at No. 1 doubles. The duo is 16-9 overall, 13-9 in dual matches, 6-3 in the league and ranked No. 58.
Texas starts freshman Kendra Strohm at No. 1 singles, and the rookie has posted records of 20-13 overall, 12-9 in dual matches and 8-1 in the Big 12. She is also ranked No. 74 in the ITA rankings. Strohm pairs with senior Ziva Grasic at No. 1 doubles and the duo is 17-10 overall, 12-9 in dual matches, 7-2 in conference play and ranked 32nd in the country.
| Team | W-L | Matches Remaining |
| Baylor | 8-1 | Oklahoma, Oklahoma State |
| Texas A&M | 7-2 | Kansas State, Missouri |
| Texas | 7-2 | Kansas State, Kansas |
| Oklahoma | 7-2 | Baylor, Colorado |
| Kansas State | 6-2 | Texas A&M, Texas, Nebraska |
