No. 14 WT Hosts SMU Friday
4/6/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
WACO, Texas ÃÆ' ¢Ãƒ ¢' ¬" The No. 14 Baylor women's tennis team (15-5) faces SMU (15-3) at Hurd Tennis Center this Friday afternoon. First serve is set for 4 p.m. (CT).
Cub Tennis, a free clinic for children 11-years-old and under, will be also begin on the back courts at 4 p.m. To participate, children must wear athletic clothing and shoes. Tennis equipment will be provided.
The Lady Bears, who are a perfect 9-0 on their home turf this year, close out the regular season with five home dual matches, four against Big 12 Conference foes. Friday's match against the Mustangs kicks off the homestand.
"It's always great to play at home," head coach Joey Scrivano said. "We've been successful playing at home this year and our players are very comfortable playing here. Ultimately, we have to keep improving and do the right things on a daily basis. We can't be satisfied or comfortable right now."
In their last meeting, the then-ranked No. 12 Lady Bears swept the Mustangs, 5-0, in Waco, Texas, on April 17, 2012. Baylor leads SMU, 19-11, in the all-time series, winning each of the last 16 matchups.
The Mustangs enter Friday's dual on a five-match win streak, notching their most recent victories against Georgia State (4-3), Cincinnati (6-1), Kansas State (5-2), Louisiana Tech (4-3) and UT Arlington (4-3). They have yet to defeat a ranked opponent this season.
Baylor is coming off of two Big 12 wins last weekend at Iowa State (4-0) and at West Virginia (4-0). They've notched triumphs over five ranked opponents on the season, including then-ranked No. 23 Northwestern (5-2), then-ranked No. 21 UCLA (4-3), then-ranked No. 47 Oklahoma (4-0), then-ranked No. 32 USC (4-1) and then-ranked No. 20 Texas A&M (4-0).
The Lady Bears are undefeated at home, 9-0, and are 3-2 in Big 12 conference play. Seniors Blair Shankle and Rhiann Newborn are nationally ranked No. 5 and No. 108, respectively. The doubles duo of Shankle and sophomore Elizabeth Profit are No. 43.
The Lady Bears continue their home match stretch against Texas on Wednesday, April 12. First serve is set for 6 p.m. in Waco.
Follow the official Twitter and Instagram accounts of the team (@BaylorWTennis) for an inside look at the program.
