Men's Tennis Announces Schedule
9/15/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Sept. 15, 2006
WACO, Texas -
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Baylor's men's tennis team released its 2006-2007 schedule featuring six of the 2006 NCAA Tournament quarterfinalists including Georgia, Texas, UCLA, Stanford, Virginia and national champion Pepperdine. In addition, Baylor faces nine opponents who finished in the top 20 in last season's Fila Intercollegiate Tennis Association national rankings.
Head coach Matt Knoll enters his 11th year at Baylor with a record of 233-47. During Knoll's 10 seasons, the Bears have won six Big 12 Championships: 2000, `02, `03, `04, '05 and `06, including five straight. Over the past five seasons, Knoll's squads have ranked no lower than ninth nationally including a 2004 NCAA championship, a 2005 runnerup finish and a semifinal appearance in 2006.
The Bears kick off the season hosting, for the sixth straight year, the Baylor HEB Intercollegiate Tournament in Waco Sept. 22-24 at the Baylor Tennis. The Polo Ralph Lauren All-American Tournament is also a part of the fall schedule (Oct. 2-8) and the Bears finish fall play at the ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships in Columbus, Ohio.
Baylor swings into regular-season action Jan. 6 at the University of Hawaii, just before competing in the Sherwood Classic in Los Angeles, Calif. Tennis fans will get to watch some outstanding matches as the always-powerful UCLA, Stanford and defending NCAA champion Pepperdine take on the Bears in Waco. Baylor will kick-off Big 12 Conference play March 23 at Nebraska.
Post-season action starts April 27 with the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City, Mo. The NCAA Tournament begins May 11 with the team championships beginning May 17 in Athens, Ga.
Five letterwinners return from last season's 25-7 squad. Seniors Michal Kokta and Matija Zgaga are back in action this season. Kokta, ranked No. 23 in the preseason, finished the season ranked No. 34, led the team in victories with a 38-9 mark and was perfect at No. 4 with a 13-0 mark. Zgaga finished the season ranked No. 62 in singles and played at No. 1 and 2 for the 2006 Bears. Two-time All-American Lars Poerschke enters his junior year as Baylor's highest ranked player, finishing No. 4 last season, and debuting at No. 4 this season. Kokta and Poerschke teamed up and ranked No. 1 in doubles on the team, finishing 16-2 on the season. Sophomores David Galic, who saw most of this action in doubles last season, and Matt Brown, who finished 27-9 overall, are also returning this year. Brown, with a No. 82 preseason ranking, was one of the four Bears to post 20 or more dual match singles wins.
Freshmen Denes Lukacs, and Dominik Mueller will both bolster this season's lineup. Lukacs, a 5-9 right-hander from Eger, Hungary, ranks No. 110 in the first listings of the season and Mueller, a 5-9 right-hander of Frankfurt, Germany, ranks No. 121.
Players Mentioned
