By Marissa Essenburg | Sports Writer
Opening the NCAA Tournament on its home court, No. 10 seed Baylor men’s tennis overpowered Tulsa 4-0 Friday to advance to the Round of 32 at the Hurd Tennis Center.
After a rain delay and an unseasonably cold first day of May, the Bears (23-9, 6-2 Big 12) stormed past the Golden Hurricane (19-13, 1-1 American), riding a sharp doubles point and three veteran-led singles victories to cap a late night and move one step deeper into postseason play.
“It’s an interesting decision-making process on whether we’re going to play inside or play outside when it’s drizzling,” head coach Michael Woodson said. “It’s a weird shift, and for tennis players, that does make a difference, but I thought they did a really good job at No. 1 and No. 3 doubles to set the tone and build a lead.”
After all three doubles courts claimed the opening game of the night, freshman Calvin Baierl and junior Devin Badenhorst were the first to finish, cruising to a 6-1 win. The duo dictated play with frequent winners, found success driving up the middle and capitalized on Tulsa’s struggles in serve receive to give Baylor the early edge in doubles.
At the top spot, the No. 69-ranked pair of graduate Alexandru Chirita and senior Zsombor Velcz followed suit with a strong but tightly contested showing. Tulsa evened the match at 2-2 behind back-to-back aces and pulled level again at 4-4, but Velcz answered with an ace of his own to put the Bears back in front 5-4.
With the doubles point on the line, Chirita and Velcz delivered the clincher, sealing a 6-4 win when Tulsa’s return found the net to secure Baylor’s first point of the night and early momentum.
Baylor carried its doubles momentum into singles, taking the opening game on five of six courts and claiming first sets across most of the lineup. Velcz struck first, senior Luc Koenig followed and No. 10 Badenhorst delivered the clincher to seal the Bears’ 4-0 win.
At No. 2 singles, Velcz handled his court with poise, fighting through a tight opening set against Tulsa’s Timothy Carlsson Seger. The No. 42 player in the country jumped ahead 3-0 before Tulsa answered with two straight games, but Velcz steadied himself to take the first set 6-3. He carried that control into another competitive second set, sealing the win with a crosscourt winner to give Baylor its first singles point and a 2-0 lead.
“I was super impressed,” Woodson said. “That [Tulsa] guy is one of their best points, and he’s had a great season. For Z to take it point by point and not let his foot off the gas, he got on top of him early and stayed there. He never let up, and I think that makes a huge difference on all the courts, just to see that we’re putting a quick point up on the board. He was focused from start to finish, and that’s the type of effort we need.”
Koenig answered at No. 5, battling back from an early deficit behind a powerful serve and down-the-line winners to take the first set 6-3 over Tulsa’s Reiya Komagata. After dropping the first three games of the second set, Koenig responded by rattling off the next three games, pushing ahead late before delivering an ace to seal a 7-5 win and extend Baylor’s lead to 3-0.
At the top court, Badenhorst opened with one of Baylor’s most dominant sets of the night, dropping just seven points in a 6-0 first-set win. Tulsa adjusted in the second, finding ways to return Badenhorst’s explosive serve and forcing a third set with a 6-4 win.
But the Big 12 Co-Player of the Year reset quickly, taking the first three games of the final set before rolling to a 6-1 victory to clinch Baylor’s victory and keep the Bears’ season alive.
“We’re not here to participate,” head coach Michael Woodson said. “We’re here to make a run and try to win the whole thing. For us, we needed to set the tone. We needed to send a message early to everybody else that we’re here to take the trophy. This is the first step in that process.”
The trophy pursuit continues less than 24 hours after closing out their first-round victory. Baylor returns to the Hurd Tennis Center to face Auburn (17-10, 6-8 SEC) at 6 p.m. Saturday in the Round of 32. The match will be streamed here.
