Sooners release spring slate

NORMAN, Okla. – University of Oklahoma women's tennis head coach David Mullins and Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Joe Castiglione announced the team's spring 2016 slate Tuesday.

OU will play 21 dual matches during the spring season including 10 home contests. The Sooners will begin the regular season at the Gregg Wadley Tennis Pavilion on Jan. 17 against Wichita State. OU also hosts four non-conference opponents in Norman: Stephen F. Austin (Feb. 6), Arkansas (Feb. 7), Oregon (Feb. 19) and Iowa (Feb. 21).

“The Big 12 has separated itself as one of the toughest conferences in the country, so we need to make the most of our opportunities early in the season in order to be prepared for some great conference play later in the year,” Mullins said.

The spring slate also includes a non-conference road trip to Santa Barbara, Calif. to face Utah (Jan. 23) and UC-Santa Barbara (Jan. 24). OU will also travel to SMU (Feb. 13), North Texas (Feb. 14), Tulsa (March 9) and UNLV (March 18).

OU begins Big 12 play on March 5 at Oklahoma State. The Big 12 home slate for the Sooners includes: Iowa State (March 18), West Virginia (March 20), Oklahoma State (April 9), TCU (April 15) and Texas Tech (April 17). OU will travel to Baylor (April 1) and Texas (April 3) as well as Kansas (April 22) and Kansas State (April 24) during league play.

OU will travel to Stillwater for the 2016 Big 12 Championships, April 28-May 1.

The Sooners are riding the momentum of the team's fifth NCAA appearance in Mullins' seven years with the program. Oklahoma finished the 2015 season by advancing to the second round of the NCAA Championships. The Sooners stunned 18^th-ranked Ohio State in the first round with a 4-3 victory to continue their run at the tournament last year.

Sophomore Lily Miyazaki ended spring 2015 with a 15-5 record at the No. 1 singles position. She posted a 10-2 record in fall tournament play.

“Lily definitely stood out as making some of the biggest improvements by adding some dimensions to her game and becoming a more complete player,” said Mullins. “But overall, I do believe that everyone made progress from the beginning to the end of the fall.”

Players Mentioned

Lily Miyazaki

Sponsors

University of Oklahoma Athletics