Cowboy Tennis Set to Open Big 12 Conference Play with BYU, Texas Tech on the Road

Match Notes (PDF)

The Basics

The 25th-ranked Oklahoma State's men's tennis team (13-4 overall) will look to ride the momentum of its wins over Tulsa and No. 11 Illinois into Big 12 conference play. The Pokes will take on BYU in Provo, Utah, on Thursday at 6 p.m. CT, before heading to Lubbock, Texas, to face Texas Tech on Saturday at 2 p.m. CT.

OSU boasts a 13-4 record, third in the Big 12 in wins. Oklahoma State has won nine of its last 11, with plans to continue its hot streak to its third road trip of the season. The Cowboys and Cougars will face off for the first time in Big 12 Conference play, while the Red Raiders remain a familiar foe.

Following the Action

For the BYU match, live stats can be viewed at: https://okla.st/3IIz9Ew, with a viewing option at: https://okla.st/4aBbSjV. In Lubbock, live stats can be found at: https://okla.st/49YOwVf. With plans to play outdoors, the match can be viewed at: https://okla.st/3rfq7GG. However, if weather forces the match inside, there will be no live video. For season-long coverage of Oklahoma State men's tennis, visit okstate.com or follow @CowboyTennis on social media.

In The Rankings

Oklahoma State breached the top-25 in the latest ITA rankings. The Cowboys recorded their second win over a top-15 opponent, defeating No. 11 Illinois, 4-2, on March 16, propelling them six spots up in the rankings.

Tyler Zink returned to No. 18, tied for his second-best ITA ranking of the season. He won his last three matches, two of which were against ranked opponents. The graduate dropped San Diego's No. 5 Oliver Tarvet, 7-6(4), 6-1, before cruising past Illinois' No. 38 Hunter Heck in straight sets. He is 4-2 against ranked opponents and owns a 12-4 overall record, with all matches played on court one.

No. 70 Isaac Becroft appeared in the singles rankings for the first time this season. The New Zealand native holds a 13-0 record, leading the Cowboys in wins. It marks the best start to a season since Lucas Gerch in 2014. He dropped two ranked opponents this season, including a win over Illinois' highest ranked player, No. 30 Karlis Ozolins, to clinch the match for the Pokes.

Alex Garcia's ranking (77) marks the 14th-consecutive week in the singles rankings. The veteran is 9-4 in singles action, recording a team point over Tulsa's Timothy Carlsson Segar en route to an OSU victory.

The Cowboys also earned a ranking on the doubles side. Zink and Becroft appeared 35th, going 8-2 in the fall, securing four matches in a row to win the ITA Fall Regional in Stillwater.

Series History

The brief series history against Brigham Young stands at one match apiece. The last time the Cowboys and Cougars faced off was in 2004, seeing a 5-1 Oklahoma State victory. Resuming the series nearly 20 years later, OSU will look to tilt the scale in its favor in a first-ever conference matchup on Thursday at 6 p.m. CT.

The Cowboys own a 24-18 series advantage over the Red Raiders, facing off twice in 2023. Texas Tech got the best of OSU in the conclusion of the regular season, defeating the Cowboys 4-0. An electric meeting in the Big 12 tournament saw the Red Raiders jump out to a 3-2 advantage. Needing both remaining courts to win, OSU's Alessio Basile knocked off Lorenzo Esquici in the third set to tie the match at three all. With all eyes on court six, Carl Roothman rallied to comeback after losing the first set. OSU went on to the conference semifinals with the win.

Streaks & Trends

Oklahoma State is 13-4
In OSU wins, it is outscoring opponents, 74-13
The Cowboys are third in the Big 12 in wins, behind UCF, TCU (14) and Baylor (15)
OSU is 118-35 all time at the Greenwood Tennis Center, including a 10-3 mark this season
The Pokes are 68-21 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 13-0 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 12-5
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 26-17 in doubles matchups

A Pair of Oklahoma State Wins Would...

Improve its record to 15-4
Tie it for most wins in the Big 12 conference
Make it 11-2 in its last 10 matches
Give it a 2-1 series advantage over BYU
Be the first time the Cowboys beat the Cougars since 2004
Make it 25-18 all time against Texas Tech

Becroft Brilliance

Senior Isaac Becroft is 13-0 in singles, the best start to a season since Lucas Gerch in 2014
He tallied five victories on court two and eight wins on court three
The New Zealand native dropped two ranked opponents: Middle Tennessee State's No. 105 Ondrej Horak and Illinois' No. 30 Karlis Ozolins
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 reached double-digit wins with a 10-1 mark
He started the season 8-0
He is 7-1 on court four and 3-0 on court five
Eight out of his 10 wins have come in straight-set fashion
In his only two matches against ranked opponents, he dropped Texas' No. 82 Cleeve Harper and Illinois' No. 55 Kenta Miyoshi, both in straight sets.

Cowboy Tennis Set to Open Big 12 Conference Play with BYU, Texas Tech on the Road

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Alessio Basile

Isaac Becroft

Alex Garcia

Carl Roothman

Erik Schiessl

Tyler Zink

Oklahoma State University Athletics

Cowboy Tennis Set to Open Big 12 Conference Play with BYU, Texas Tech on the Road

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Alessio Basile

Isaac Becroft

Alex Garcia

Carl Roothman

Erik Schiessl

Tyler Zink

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