Cowboy Tennis Takes Down Baylor, 4-3

Sunday, April 8

Stillwater, OK

1 p.m.

Oklahoma State University

Baylor University

April 08, 2018 | Cowboy Tennis

Photos

STILLWATER – Oklahoma State's 14th-ranked men's tennis team defeated No. 19 Baylor in dramatic fashion on Sunday at the Michael and Anne Greenwood Tennis Center as senior Eleftherios Theodorou provided the match-clinching point in a third-set tiebreaker to propel the Cowboys to a 4-3 victory.

OSU (20-4; 2-0 Big 12) has now defeated six ranked opponents this season, including four that are ranked in the top 25.

"Every single conference game is going to be huge," coach Jay Udwadia said. "There are only five Big 12 matches in the regular season, so we know every one is going to be special and everyone can play. They are all Top 30 teams. Baylor is such a great program. They have won a lot in the past this year. To beat them is a great win. To beat any program in the Big 12 is huge win for our program."?

Theodorou provided the match-clinching point for OSU, as he came back from a first set loss to knock off Baylor's Akos Kotorman, 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7-2). Theodorou's win pushes his season singles record to 10-4.

"Lefty is really just a pleasant surprise," Udwadia said. "I knew he had it in him, and today was his time to shine. And look what he did. He finished off playing great, not only by winning, but by playing great and playing fearless at the end. I'm so proud of him."

"There were many moments that I was thinking that it would have to come down to my match," Theodorou said. "It could have been up to Jurence Mendoza or Luke Hammond so I wasn't sure. But then, the moment I was sure that it was going to come down to my match was when Hammond had won his match and Mendoza was down. I think my hands started shaking. I realized it was going to come down to me, and I was down to breaks. I thought to myself that I had to really fight back here."

Prior to singles action, OSU won the doubles point as two Cowboy tandems took down two top-ranked Baylor tandems.

Theodorou and Artur Dubinski struck first on court one as they defeated No. 3 Will Little and Johannes Schretter of Baylor, 6-3. This marks the pair's 15th win this season.

Next up was Hammond and Mendoza on court two where the pair took down No. 48 Constantin Frantzen and Kotorman on court two, 6-3. The tandem is now 5-1 on the season.

This is the Cowboys' sixth straight match winning the doubles point. The Cowboys are a perfect 17-0 when winning the doubles point this season.

"You know; the guys are just coming together like crazy," Udwadia said. "We were obviously dealing with a little adversity and for people to step up...I mean we are using everyone in our lineup. I couldn't be more proud of the guys. There is a little magic in the air."

In singles action, Baylor quickly won on courts two and three putting the Cowboys down, 2-1.

Dubinski would tie the match at 2-2 as he defeated No. 44 Johannes Schretter of Baylor in straight sets, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3. The junior now boasts an 18-6 record on the season and a 5-0 record playing in the No. 1 position for the Cowboys.

The Bears would once again take the lead, 3-2, as Mendoza fell on court four to Sven Lah, 6-7 (5-7), 7-5, 6-1.??Hammond tied the match again as he defeated Constantin Frantzen, 6-3, 6-7 (9-11), 6-1 on court five.

The match-deciding point would come down to senior, Theodorou who clinched for the Cowboys in three dramatic sets.

OSU has now earned 20 wins this season which gives coach Udwadia his fourth 20-win season at OSU since he took over the program in the fall of 2012.

Next up, the Cowboys travel south of the Red River to take on Texas on April 13 and TCU on April 15.

"The atmosphere that you saw at the end and the celebration, we are going to try and hone that, contain it and save that for next weekend," Udwadia said. "We are going to need it. And like I have said, all of these teams are great teams. When you are playing great teams, you need every single advantage you can get."

Keep up with all things Cowboy Tennis by following @CowboyTennis on social media.

No. 14 Oklahoma State 4, No. 19 Baylor 3
April 8, 2018 | Greenwood Tennis Center | Stillwater, Okla.

Singles | Order of finish: (3, 2, 1, 4, 5, 6)
1. #82 Artur Dubinski (OKST) def. #44 Johannes Schretter (BU) 7-6 (7-4), 6-3
2. Matias Soto (BU) def. Tristan Meraut (OKST) 6-4, 6-4
3. Will Little (BU) def. Mathieu Scaglia (OKST) 6-2, 6-4
4. Sven Lah (BU) def. Jurence Mendoza (OKST) 6-7 (5-7), 7-5, 6-1
5. Luke Hammond (OKST) def. Constantin Frantzen (BU) 6-3, 6-7 (9-11), 6-1
6. Leftherios Theodorou (OKST) def. Akos Kotorman (BU) 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7-2)

Doubles | Order of finish: (1, 3, 2)
1. Artur Dubinski/Leftherios Theodorou (OKST) def. #3 Will Little/Johannes Schretter (BU) 6-3
2. Jurence Mendoza/Luke Hammond (OKST) def. #48 Constantin Frantzen/Akos Kotorman (BU) 6-3
3. Sven Lah/Roy Smith (BU) def. Mathieu Scaglia/Brady Draheim (OKST) 6-2