Tennis Championship Central
If the USF men’s and women’s tennis teams have their say, this year’s American Athletic Conference Championships will strike a familiar tone.
The Bulls came away with an unprecedented haul at last year’s championships in Orlando. The top-seeded USF men rolled to their fourth straight American Athletic Conference title, improving their record to 12-0 all-time in the event. The Bulls’ women’s team, meanwhile, stunned the field as the No. 7 seed to claim its first conference crown.
While the Bulls could certainly be a factor in this year’s championships, a number of teams have established themselves as viable contenders for both the men’s and women’s titles. The American boasts three men’s teams and three women’s teams that appear in this week’s national rankings. And beyond the ranked teams are even more squads that have won far more than they have lost this season.
The American’s women’s championship begins Wednesday, April 18, and continues through the April 21 final. The men’s championship runs from Thursday, April 19, through Sunday, April 22. The winners of the women’s and men’s championships will earn The American’s automatic bids to the NCAA Division I Tennis Championships.
Complete coverage of The American Tennis Championships, including live scoring of each match, can be found on the conference’s
Championship Central site. Live coverage of the women’s and men’s finals will be available on the American Digital Network.
Women’s Championship
The American has had a breakout year in women’s tennis in 2017-18, thanks to the consistency of one of its perennial contenders (Tulsa), the rapid ascent of this year’s favorite (UCF), and the addition of a team that had won 11 of its last 12 conference championships (Wichita State).
UCF (18-3) enjoyed a remarkable turnaround to come into the 2018 championship as the No. 1 seed. The Knights, who were seeded No. 8 in last year’s event, come in as the favorite thanks to a successful merger of senior leadership and impact freshmen. UCF doesn’t have any true stars on its roster; only one player – freshman Rebeka Stolmar – is ranked among the ITA’s top 125 players. But the Knights can stack six players in their singles lineup who are capable of winning in any match. Stolmar leads the way with an 18-1 dual match record, primarily at the No. 3 spot, while four other players all have at least 10 singles wins this season.
The Knights will face either No. 8-seeded ECU (17-8) or No. 9 Tulane (12-10) in their first match of the championship. ECU and Tulane get the tournament started Wednesday at 9 a.m. CT; the winner will face UCF in Thursday’s quarterfinals at 9 a.m.
Tulsa (18-5) comes in as the No. 2 seed, and the Golden Hurricane has to like its chances this week after it went 5-0 against American Athletic Conference opponents in the regular season. Included in that ledger was a 4-2 win against UCF last Sunday in Tulsa. The Golden Hurricane, which saw its only losses this season came to nationally ranked opponents, is led by senior Ksenia Laskutova, a two-time all-conference selection who is ranked No. 72 on the ITA singles chart. Laskutova has gone 15-4 playing primarily at No. 1 singles and pairs with Martha Matoula to comprise a doubles tandem that is 14-5 entering the postseason.
Tulsa’s quarterfinal opponent will be the winner of Wednesday’s first-round match between No. 7 Memphis (15-7) and No. 10 Cincinnati (11-9).
Wichita State (16-7) has proven itself as one of the nation’s top programs by virtue of eight straight Missouri Valley Conference titles. The Shockers, who are in their first year as a member of The American, have a veteran lineup that has proven itself in postseason play. Wichita State’s top six includes the last two Missouri Valley Conference Players of the Year (2017 winner Giulla Guidetti and 2016 winner Gabriela Porubin), both of whom play this year behind sophomore Fatima Bizhukova at No. 1 (ranked No. 56 nationally) and junior Sandra Honigova at No. 2 (15-3 in singles).
Wichita State will meet either No. 6-seeded Houston (19-3) or No. 11-seeded UConn (10-10) in Thursday’s quarterfinals.
USF (11-10) defends its 2017 championship as the No. 4 seed in the 2018 championship. The Bulls opened the regular season with a 2-7 mark, then went unbeaten in the month of March, reeling off nine straight wins before dropping their final three dual matches in April. USF’s strength has been at the bottom of its singles lineup, where the Bulls are a combined 35-22 at the No. 4-6 positions. USF also brings a strong doubles game to the tournament as the top tandem of Nicole Dzenga/Vanja Klaric comes in with a solid 13-7 record.
USF’s quarterfinal opponent will be the winner of Wednesday’s first-round match between No. 6 SMU (12-8) and No. 12 Temple (10-7).
Men’s Championship
For four years, The American’s men’s championship has essentially been the USF invitational. The Bulls have gone largely unchallenged in their run to four straight tournament titles. USF had been the No. 1 seed in each of the last three championships and won each of its nine matches by either 4-0 or 4-1 final scores.
The last team to threaten USF on the men’s side was Memphis, when the Tigers were the No. 1 seed in 2014 and battled the Bulls to a 4-3 finish in the championship match. This year, the Tigers (17-4) are once again the No. 1 seed as Memphis brings a 12-match winning streak into the postseason. Memphis went unbeaten against American Athletic Conference teams this season, including a 4-0 win against USF April 6 that suggests that this could be the year that a new champion is crowned. The Tigers are led at the top of the ladder by senior Ryan Peniston, who is 12-2 playing primarily at No. 1 singles, and senior Andrew Watson, who has gone 15-3 overall and 15-1 when playing at No. 2. Peniston and Watson join Kai Lemke to comprise a trio of proven seniors in the top three positions.
Memphis’ first match in the championship will be in Friday’s quarterfinal round (9 a.m. CT). The Tigers will face the winner of Thursday’s first-round match between No. 8-seeded Temple (12-9) and No. 9-seeded SMU (9-17).
While Memphis comes in as the hottest team in The American, No. 2-seeded Tulane (15-6) is not far off the pace. The Green Wave has won nine of its last 10 matches entering the postseason, including a 4-0 win against then-No. 15 Texas in late March. Tulane boast’s The American’s top-ranked singles player as senior Constantin Schmitz has turned in a 16-4 dual match record at No. 1 singles. Schmitz, who has won his last nine matches, was ranked No. 14 in last week’s Oracle/ITA singles rankings.
Tulane will face either No. 7-seeded ECU (21-4) or No. 10-seeded UConn (4-15) in its opening match in Friday’s quarterfinals.
UCF (10-9) enters the tournament as the No. 3 seed as the Knights look to reach the final for the second straight year. The Knights, who challenged themselves against a schedule that included nine ranked opponents in 19 matches, have been led by the doubles tandem of Korey Lovett/Eero Vasa. That duo has gone 14-2 at the No. 1 spot and is ranked No. 3 in the Oracle/ITA national rankings. UCF has gone 28-18 in doubles play in dual matches, which gives the Knights a head start entering singles play.
UCF will face No. 6-seeded Tulsa (11-16) in Friday’s quarterfinal round of the championship. The Knights scored a 5-2 win against the Golden Hurricane April 6 in Tulsa.
Wichita State (14-9) enters its first American Athletic Conference Championship as the No. 4 seed. The Shockers saw a seven-match winning streak snapped in its regular-season finale against Drake. Wichita State, which won the in-season Mountain Pacific Tournament title earlier this year, has been led by Murkel Dellien, who has gone 14-5 playing primarily at No. 2 singles.
The Shockers will face No. 5-seeded USF (8-15) in Friday’s quarterfinals. The Bulls have only two returning players on the singles ladder from last year’s lineup, which claimed The American title. Junior Alberto Barroso-Campos has taken over as the No. 1 player and has gone 10-5 in singles play this season.