The University of Oklahoma men’s tennis team defeated the No. 2 Baylor Bears for the fourth time this season in as many matches, claiming the Big 12 Tournament Championship, after tying for the Big 12 regular season Championship.
In a positive turn of events, the Sooners won the doubles point to take an early 1-0 lead over the Bears. This was only Baylor’s second doubles loss of the season; the other loss was also against OU.
The No. 1 team of Axel Alvarez and Dane Webb split up but each won their sets. Alvarez with Jose Salazar won 6-4 on court 3 and Webb with Spencer Papa won 6-3 on court 2, while the No. 1 team of Alex Ghilea and Andrew Harris lost 6-1.
The good times kept rolling for the Sooners when No. 2 Axel Alvarez beat No. 1 Julian Lenz in straight sets, 6-1, 6-4. Alvarez is now 20-0 on the season, including this win that extended the OU lead to 2-0.
Coach John Roddick made a statement about Alvarez’s play, but also his fall from No. 1 to No. 2 in the nation.
"I think he is showing that he is playing the best tennis in the country right now," Roddick said. "He is doing it in a manner that sometimes puts out matches in complete control. He is proving that he is the best player in the country."
No. 5 Andrew Harris continued the winning ways on court 2, also winning in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4, moving OU one point away from another victory and another Big 12 Championship, 3-0.
However, this is where the dual took a turn. No. 35 Dane Webb lost on court three in straight sets, 7-6, 6-3, while Alex Ghilea lost on court 4, 6-4, 7-5, tightening the dual up, 3-2.
The dual did not get any better for the Sooners on court 5, where Spencer Papa lost a dramatic 7-6, 2-6, 6-2, match that tied it all up at 3.
It all came down to court 6 where Florin Bragusi won 6-4, 6-7, 6-4 to take the set, match and dual for the Sooners, 4-3.
This win moved the Sooners to 23-2 on the season. With two Big 12 Championships and all the momentum they could possibly want, OU is headed into the NCAA Championships.
Roddick was proud of the fight he saw out of his team.
“That was a great match,” Roddick said. “A lot of credit goes to Baylor, because, as you saw, that match goes either way. That was a coin flip situation and you are not going to see better tennis than down there at (court) six. It was a heck of a match, and I was really proud of our guys for just kind of grinding through that one and pulling it out at the end.”
The Sooners will await their position in the NCAA Team Championships. The draw will be announced Tuesday, April 26 at 4:30 p.m. CT. Having been ranked No. 1 for nine straight weeks and picking up two top-10 wins this weekend, Oklahoma will likely be the No. 1 overall seed.
"It would be a big deal for us," Roddick said. "The guys have earned it and they’ve played hard all year. They’ve won some really tough matches that could have gone the other way. You still have to go out and play the tournament though."
