The OU women’s tennis team is unbeaten through six matches, and will face No. 18 Arkansas in Fayetteville on Sunday after playing Memphis on Saturday.
The Sooners are off to their best start since being 8-0 in 2003 and highest ranking since 2005, when they were No. 24. They have upset two top-40 teams and shut out their other four opponents.
Junior Ana-Maria Constantinescu and freshman Teona Tsertsvadze said the rankings are a great way to measure improvement, but that they don’t put too much stock in them, especially this early.
The keys to the Sooners’ success this year have been consistent doubles play and a new psychological approach.
Three pairs of doubles play in the opening act of each match; the school that wins of two of those earns one point. OU has won the doubles point in every match, giving them the early lead and some security heading into singles play.
Constantinescu and Tsertsvadze, the No. 29 doubles team, lead OU. They played together in the fall as well, winning the Central Region doubles championship. Constantinescu said their best matches are ahead of them.
“We’re definitely looking forward to see what the competition brings next,” she said.
Head coach David Mullins has altered the team’s preparation to focus more on their own abilities rather than opponents’ weaknesses. He has employed the help of a sports psychologist this season to help the team keep their composure under pressure.
Tsertsvadze, a highly touted recruit, has been under pressure all spring, facing one of the opponent’s top-three players in every match. She said that she’s been surprised by the high level of college play in the US (she hails from the Republic of Georgia) and frustrated with her 4-2 record but will catch up. She is a freshman, after all.
In their last match, and only road match this season, OU upset then-No. 32 Tulsa Feb. 17. The Sooners have upset TU two consecutive years by the score 4-3 with junior Marie-Pier Huet clinching the match each time.
Constantinescu compared this Saturday’s Memphis match to the North Texas match right before OU hosted then-No. 32 Alabama Feb. 6. OU swept unranked UNT 7-0 before upsetting Alabama 4-3.
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