BYU males’s tennis group competes in opposition to Pacific in Provo throughout 2023 season. The Cougars may have their arms full once they start play within the Large 12 this season. Nate Edwards, BYU Photograph
BYU competes in opposition to Pacific in Provo through the 2023 season. Nate Edwards, BYU Photograph
Editor’s be aware: Fifth in a collection of articles inspecting how every BYU program will stack up in opposition to its new convention foes. In the present day’s program: males’s tennis.
Within the earlier 4 previews of this collection — BYU girls’s soccer, girls’s volleyball, males’s cross-country and ladies’s cross-country — all 4 applications look to compete immediately for Large 12 convention titles and have established a convention the place NCAA postseason competitors is a given.
BYU’s males’s tennis program, nonetheless, won't proceed that pattern. The Cougars had been stable within the West Coast Convention, ending second or third six occasions in 11 seasons, however by no means did declare a convention title. The final championship banner for males’s tennis was a pair of MWC titles in BYU’s final two seasons in that convention in 2010 and 2011.
The Cougars have performed in eight NCAA Tournaments (1979, 1985, 1988, 1997, 2001, 2010, 2011, 2013) in program historical past, however they’ve by no means superior previous the primary spherical. Their final top-25 closing rating was in 1988 once they completed twenty fifth (there have been solely 20 groups within the NCAA tourney that season).
Final season, BYU positioned fifth within the WCC at 4-5 and completed with an general report of 6-16 in a yr marred by accidents. On the finish of the season, head coach Dave Porter retired after greater than 40 years teaching mixed at BYU and BYU-Hawaii. As of the writing of this text, a brand new coach has not been introduced.
In response to the group web site, all eight members of final yr’s roster are returning in 2023. Among the many returnees are Jack Barnett and Wally Thayne, All-WCC honorees in doubles and at-large nominations to the 2022 ITA All-American Championships, collegiate tennis’ fall nationwide championship.
They’ll be joined by Kai-I Wang, Taiwan’s high youth participant, and Abhinmanyu Vannemreddy, a switch from Charlotte who performed No. 1 singles for the 49ers. The Cougars even have two five-star recruits, however each are at the moment on church missions and gained’t play this season: Caden Hasler, who completed 2022 because the No. 1 junior doubles participant within the nation, and Hardy Owen, brother of present Cougar Redd Owen.
Large 12 males’s tennis
Much more sadly for the Cougars? The Large 12 is basically good at males’s tennis. BYU will be a part of seven different universities sponsoring the game: Baylor, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, TCU, Texas, Texas Tech and UCF. Cincinnati, Houston, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State and West Virginia don't.
NCAA males’s tennis has a full 64-team postseason event with the highest 16 groups seeded. Final yr, Texas was the No. 1 seed and TCU No. 2. All six of the standard Large 12 groups participated: Texas and TCU each reached the Last 4, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State superior to the second spherical, and Baylor and Texas Tech misplaced within the first spherical.
Since 2000, Baylor and Texas have performed in each NCAA Event. Oklahoma has performed within the final 13 tournaments, TCU has performed within the final eight, and Texas Tech has performed within the final 4. Oklahoma State has missed the final two postseasons however performed in seven-straight earlier than then. Even UCF has participated not too long ago in 2017, 2019 and 2021.
Baylor took the nationwide title in 2004 and was runner-up in 2005 and 2021, Texas was runner-up in 2008 and gained all of it in 2019, and Oklahoma was runner-up in 2014, 2015 and 2016. Most years have featured each Large 12 faculty ranked within the high 40 of the ultimate ITA rankings and three to 5 are often ranked within the high 25.
So sure, the Large 12 is aware of find out how to play tennis.
Baylor, TCU and Texas have claimed most the current convention titles. In 2022, Texas completed atop the common season standings with TCU successful the event.
How will BYU fare?
I’ve already given away the ending however competing within the Large 12 shall be a troublesome row to hoe for the Cougars this fall — actually, it’d be powerful for nearly any group within the nation. Ending higher than final this upcoming season can be an accomplishment. BYU’s new coach will hopefully proceed to develop the younger returning and incoming expertise and use the prospect at taking part in within the Large 12 as a recruiting increase to assist the Cougars develop into aggressive in what's already a cutthroat convention.
BYU competes in opposition to Pacific in Provo through the 2023 season.
Nate Edwards, BYU Photograph