Thursday, April 26, 2007
Kansas plays host to the 2007 Big 12 Tennis Championships at the Plaza Tennis Center in Kansas City, Mo. Starting today, 12 women’s tennis teams hit the court in a single elimination team tournament to decide the Big 12 women’s tennis champ. Here is a closer look at two teams that could win, and one team that most definitely will not.
The Favorite — Baylor Bears, overall — 19-6, Big 12 — 10-1
Tennis — like golf and baseball — is a warm weather sport. The schools in the Big 12 South have a distinct advantage when it comes to crucial things like recruiting and suitable weather for practice time. It’s no coincidence that Baylor, Texas and Texas A&M finished one, two and three, respectively, during the regular season. The Baylor Bears are simply a cut above the rest of the conference. The defending champs finished the regular season ranked 15th in the country, and boast convincing 6-1 victories over Texas and Texas A&M. The Bears, have won 11 team matches in a row, and have a former NCAA Singles Champion, 19th ranked Zuzana Zemenova, playing at the No. 1 singles spot. Baylor also features Zuzana Cerna and Lenka Broosova, ranked 51st and 62nd in the country in singles, respectively. You’ve probably never heard any of these names before, but if we were talking basketball, Zemenova, Cerna and Broosova would be Wright, Rush, and Chalmers. The Point? Baylor is scary good.
The Sleeper — Colorado Buffaloes, overall — 16-6, Big 12 – 9-2
The Buffs don’t quite garner the attention that the Baylor, Texas, and Texas A&M trio does. Of course, they did finish 9th in the conference last year, and Boulder, Colo. isn’t exactly a tennis mecca; so maybe the disrespect is justified. With that being said, this is a new year, and Colorado has shown that they are a new team. The Buffs are riding a six-match winning streak, and have climbed to 35th in the national rankings. More importantly, Colorado is the only Big 12 team to knock off Baylor — an impressive 5-2 victory on March 4. So, with all the praise being lavished on the teams from Texas, don’t be shocked if Colorado takes the title back to the Rockies.
The “One-in-million-shot”— Iowa State Cyclones, overall — 5-12, Big 12 – 0-11
The Iowa State women’s tennis program is historically and monumentally awful. In the last 10 years, the program is 4-109 in the Big 12. Let’s repeat that. Four and one hundred and nine. Now, we are not here to judge the Iowa State women’s tennis program, but, if Iowa State were to win the Big 12 Championship, it would be the most shocking upset since, well—ever.
—Edited by Lisa Tilson
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