Oklahoma State University Athletics
Oklahoma State University
Illinois
Cowboy Tennis Wraps Up Non-Conference Slate with No. 11 Illinios
March 15, 2024 | Cowboy Tennis
Match Notes (PDF)
The Basics
The 31st-ranked Oklahoma State's men's tennis team (12-4 overall) will look to make a statement in the non-conference finale, with No. 11 Illinois coming to town on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. CT. The Pokes have won eight of their last 10 matches, with seven of those wins coming at the Greenwood Tennis Center.
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OSU boasts a 12-4 record, third in the Big 12 in wins. The Greenwood Tennis Center remains a hostile environment for opponents, with OSU owning a 117-35 all-time record, and a 10-3 mark this season.
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Following the Action
For the match, live stats can be viewed at: https://okla.st/statbroadcast. Fans can watch the match using the following link: https://okla.st/48RKlcG. For season-long coverage of the Oklahoma State men's tennis team, visit okstate.com and follow @CowboyTennis on social media.
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In The Rankings
Oklahoma State appeared at No. 31 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's latest rankings.
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OSU's court one player, Tyler Zink, checked in at No. 26 in singles. The graduate senior owns the second-most wins on the team, with all matches recorded on the featured court. He has two ranked wins to add to his resume, including a straight-set victory over San Diego's No. 5 Oliver Tarvet on March 10.
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Alex Garcia was slotted at No. 62 in the latest rankings. He is tied for third on the team in singles wins, including a ranked win over Middle Tennessee State's No. 47 Marcel Kamrowski.
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The Cowboys also earned a ranking on the doubles side. Zink and Isaac Becroft appeared 28th, going 8-2 in the fall, securing four matches in a row to win the ITA Fall Regionals in Stillwater.
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Series History
The Cowboys are 2-2 all time against Illinois. The series started in 1982, when OSU came out victorious, 7-1. Oklahoma State got its second win of the series in 1986, winning 6-3. The two teams didn't meet for 21 years until Illinois tallied its first win in 2007. The last meeting was in the NCAA tournament in 2017, where the Fighting Illini won a tight second-round match, 4-3. In the tournament meeting, the Pokes collected the doubles point and wins on courts three and six.
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Streaks & Trends
- Oklahoma State is 12-4
- In OSU wins, it is outscoring opponents, 66-10
- The Cowboys have the third-most wins in the Big 12 Conference, behind UCF and Baylor
- OSU is 117-35 all time at the Greenwood Tennis Center, including a 10-3 mark this season
- The Pokes are 64-20 in singles matchups
- All six courts have a .667 or better winning percentage
- Four Cowboys remain unbeaten in singles
- 10 Cowboys tallied a win in singles play
- In singles, four Cowboys beat ranked opponents
- Isaac Becroft leads the team with a 12-0 record
- Court three is 13-1 in singles
- The Cowboys collected seven out of eight doubles points from Feb. 3 to Feb. 25
- In doubles, court one is 9-3 and court two is 12-4
- Eight different doubles pairings have notched a win
- Alessio Basile and Isaac Becroft hold the team lead with nine doubles wins.
- Tyler Zink and Alex Garcia are 8-3 on court one in doubles, with two losses to ranked opponents.
- OSU is 26-15 in doubles matchups
An Oklahoma State Win Would...
- Improve its record to 13-4
- Give it its second top-15 win of the season
- Tie it for second-most wins in the Big 12 conference
- Make it 9-2 in its last 10 matches
- Be the first time OSU dropped Illinois since 1986.
- Give it a 3-2 series advantage over Illinois
Becroft Brilliance
- Senior Isaac Becroft is 12-0 in singles, the best start to a season since Lucas Gerch in 2014
- He tallied four victories on court two and eight wins on court three
- The New Zealand native dropped a ranked opponent, Middle Tennessee State's No. 105 Ondrej Horak
- Becroft and his partner Alessio Basile hold a team-high nine wins in doubles, all on court two
- The pairing is 8-2 in their last 10 matches
E. Schiesty
- Freshman Erik Schiessl is 9-1 in singles
- He started the season 8-0
- He is 6-1 on court four and 3-0 on court five
- Seven out of his nine wins have come in straight-set fashion
- The Nuremberg, Germany, native earned a straight-set victory over Texas' No. 82 Cleeve Harper
Players Mentioned
