No. 2 MT Readies for ITA Kickoff Weekend

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
            While second-ranked Baylor was the runner-up in last year's ITA National Indoor Championship, Michael Woodson has enough newcomers on his roster that "some of these guys are asking what we're even doing this weekend."
            What Baylor (4-0) is doing is hosting the ITA Kick-Off Weekend at the Hurd Tennis Center, hoping to advance to the ITA Championship for the 11^th time in program history.
            "Thankfully, we've got enough new guys where it feels fresh," said Woodson, whose team lost to North Carolina, 4-1, in last year's final after wins over Texas and Illinois. "It's a little bit different this year. Some of these guys just think we're playing two matches. We all want to get to Seattle. So, explaining to them that this is a knockout tournament – if we lose, we're out – is new."
            The Bears, who swept ACU and Boise State in a home-opener doubleheader earlier this week, will face William & Mary (0-1) at 2 p.m. Sunday. In the other first-round match, Miami (4-0) and Clemson (3-0) square off as undefeated ACC rivals at 11 a.m., with the winners advancing to Monday's 2 p.m. championship with a spot in the ITA National Indoor on the line.
            "It's a lot different than what we've been doing the last couple of weeks," Woodson said. "I think it makes it a little bit more competitive. It's going to be very similar to what we'll do in the NCAA Tournament . . . there's just more of a buzz around this. That's what makes it fun. To get that in January is rare in this sport."
            As one of 15 regional host sites, Baylor is trying to advance to the ITA National Indoor Championships that will be held Feb 18-21 in Seattle, Washington. The Bears are 20-0 all-time in the ITA Kick-Off Weekend, including last year when they went in as the No. 4 regional seed and beat Michigan on the road before knocking off Texas A&M, 4-1, in Dallas in a match that was postponed because of a COVID shutdown on the Michigan campus.
            "It was a little different last year with the smaller draws," Woodson said of the eight-team draw at the national site. "It's nice just to get back to a little bit of normalcy. And doing it at home, it's always better."
            Having lost just one point in the first four matches, Baylor boasts five undefeated singles players, with Finn Bass and UCF transfer Juan Pablo Grassi Mazzuchi at 4-0 and Adrian Boitan, Matias Soto and Sven Lah at 3-0.
            In doubles, the 18^th-ranked duo of Lah and Bass are also 4-0, with Lah picking up his 100^th career doubles win against Boise State.
            "It's funny, because we don't normally start the season on the road," said Woodson, whose team opened with a pair of wins in Lincoln, Neb., beating Nebraska, 6-1, and Creighton, 7-0. "With the COVID situation, we were able to do that, which I thought presented a new challenge and was maybe a little bit uncomfortable.
            "Coming home and seeing the guys and how quickly they adapted to the environment, how comfortable they were in the setting, how well they competed, made us feel a little bit better about where we are."
            Baylor faces a William & Mary team that was ranked 59^th at the end of last season and opened the spring season with a 7-0 loss at Liberty. The Flames lost to UNC-Wilmington, 4-3, in last year's Colonial Athletic Association championship, falling a win short of its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2015.
            Miami has won four of the last five matches against Clemson and lost to Mississippi State in the first round of last year's NCAA Tournament. The Hurricanes are playing in the ITA Kick-Off Weekend for the first time since 2019, when they lost 4-0 at Texas.
            Clemson, which hasn't been to the NCAA Tournament since a second-round loss at Kentucky in 2014, is led by 109^th-ranked senior Teodor Giusca of Romania. The Tigers lead the all-time series with Miami, 30-29.
            "I think at our level and at this level, it's about playing our 'A' game, making sure we have good energy, that we assert ourselves, that we're looking to play our brand of tennis," Woodson said. "We would be very naïve to think that we don't need to do anything but focus on ourselves, but I think the difference can ultimately be our ability to won our own games and go out there and play confidently."
            Live scoring and video streaming are available on the men's tennis page at baylorbears.com.

WACO, Texas – The No. 2 Baylor men's tennis team looks ahead to the ITA Kickoff Weekend held on Sunday and Monday at the Hurd Tennis Center, where the Bears face William & Mary at 2 p.m. to start it off.

BU is 20-0 all-time when playing in ITA Kickoff Weekend.

Free pizza will be offered to fans between the end of doubles and the start of singles play. Admission to the tournament is free to all patrons.

Baylor goes into the weekend with a 4-0 record for the dual season, three of which were sweeps. The Bears have had 21 sweeps under second-year head coach Michael Woodson.

Sven Lah and Finn Bass, the No. 18-ranked doubles duo, go into the weekend at a perfect 4-0, with Lah winning his 100^thcareer doubles match against Boise State the week prior. He is tied for fourth all-time in the BU record book with 100.

So far this season in singles play, Finn Bass and Juan Pablo Grassi Mazzuchi are both 4-0 in dual play while Adrian Boitan, Matias Soto and Lah are 3-0.

On Sunday, Clemson and Miami will play at 11 a.m., with Baylor following against W&M at 2 p.m. The losers of Sunday's matches will play in Monday's consolation at 11 a.m. while the winners will play in the championship at 2 p.m.

Last season, the Bears finished as the runners-up at the ITA National Indoor Championships after defeating Michigan and Texas A&M at ITA Kickoff Weekend.

If Baylor makes it to Seattle, Washington, for ITA Indoors, it will be its 11^th trip to the tournament.

A full recap and final statistics will be uploaded to BaylorBears.com after the conclusion of the match. Live stats and live streaming is available on the men's tennis page.

To stay up to date throughout the season on all things Baylor men's tennis, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @BaylorMTennis.

- BaylorBears.com -

No. 2 MT Readies for ITA Kickoff Weekend

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Finn Bass

Adrian Boitan

Juan Pablo Grassi Mazzuchi

Sven Lah

Matias Soto

Footer