No. 1 OU Hosts Virginia in Top-10 Showdown

No. 1 Oklahoma vs. No. 7 Virginia

March 10, 5:00 p.m. | Headington Family Tennis Center

Norman, Okla.

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NORMAN – The No. 1 Oklahoma men's tennis team kicks off the outdoor portion of its schedule Tuesday night when it hosts No. 7 Virginia at 5 p.m. at the Headington Family Tennis Center. The match will be streamed live on SoonerSports.tv.

INDOOR PERFECTION

The Sooners will play their second outdoor match of the year Tuesday and their first at home. Oklahoma finishes indoor play a perfect 13-0, including four wins at the ITA National Indoor Championships to claim the title. Oklahoma boasts eight wins over teams currently ranked in the ITA top-25. In their last match, the Sooners bested No. 8 Ohio State in Columbus, Ohio. The win snapped a 200-match home streak for the Buckeyes that stands as the all-time collegiate record for any sport.

IN THE RANKS

Oklahoma is currently ranked No. 1 by the ITA. The Sooners occupy the top spot for the fourth week in program history and second week in a row. The team also occupied the top spot immediately following its title at the indoor championships and in 2014 after topping Ohio State at home.

The Sooners are well represented in the singles and doubles ranks with four players ranked in singles and two teams ranked in doubles. Junior Axel Alvarez is the highest ranked Sooner at No. 7, sophomore Andrew Harris comes in at No. 19, senior Dane Webb sits at No. 26 and sophomore Alex Ghilea rounds things out at No. 53. The Sooners' top doubles pair of Alvarez and Webb jump one spot to No. 5 this week, while the new pairing of Harris and Ghilea sit at No. 69.

SCOUTING REPORT

Virginia enters the match at 9-2 on the year. The Cavaliers have won their last two matches and have three wins against top-25 opponents. Both losses for the Cavaliers have come against No. 5 Baylor, one at the National Indoor Championships and one in Waco, Texas.

CAVALIERS IN THE RANKS

No. 3 Ryan Shane – 18-4, 6-0 at No. 2
No. 6 Thai-Son Kwiatkowski - 24-4, 5-1 at No. 3
No. 27 Mitchell Frank – 7-1, 4-1 at No. 1, 3-0 at No. 2
No. 70 Collin Altamirano - 7-0, 7-0 in dual play
No. 101 Mac Stylinger – 9-3, 2-1 in dual play

No. 19 Luca Corinteli and Ryan Shane – 13-3, 5-1 at No. 1
No. 52 Mac Styslinger and Thai-Son Kwiatkowski – 7-2, 5-1 in dual play

QUICK HITS

- Oklahoma finishes indoor play 13-0.
- The Sooners have nine wins over teams currently ranked in the top-25 and eight teams in the top-20.
- Oklahoma is 5-1 when losing the doubles point.
- The four Sooners ranked in singles are a combined 39-5 in dual play.
- The Sooners are 19-6 in singles against ranked opponents
- At 12-0, Axel Alvarez leads the Sooners in wins.
- Oklahoma's lone loss of the season came in its only outdoor match (Texas A&M, 2/20)
- The Sooners are 11-0 at No. 2 singles. The only position without a loss.
- Florin Bragusi is 4-0 on the year and 3-0 in three-set matches.

QUOTABLE

Head Coach John Roddick

On Virginia:
“All we can do is go out and try to focus on what we have been working on and execute our game plan. It will come down to execution. The same thing goes for Virginia as well. You have to stay aggressive. If you don't go after it you will usually end up on the short side of those kinds of matches.”

On the team's level of play at this point in the season:
“Obviously we have had a great first half of the year and now we are starting the second half. This is a big non-conference matchup, but really it is an opportunity for both teams. You don't have a lot to lose—if you come up short it doesn't affect you long term—but it can be a huge momentum builder and confidence builder. There is a lot to gain with very little to lose for everybody.”

On playing in front of nearly 800 at Ohio State and the impact a home crowd can have:
“It keeps you really sharp and focused. I could tell Ohio State's guys were very sharp on big points. When you have that many people pushing for you you want to perform well. Hopefully we can replicate some of that tomorrow.”

Sophomore Andrew Harris

On playing at home and outdoors:
“It's been a long time coming. We went undefeated indoors and that was great, but now its time for the outdoor season. We're excited. The majority of the team would prefer to play outside if they had a choice.”

On adjusting to outdoor play:
“I think we just need to work points more. You can't just get away with going big on every shot. You have to play more shape, more topspin and you have to work the point more and be a bit more patient.”

On playing Virginia:
“We haven't seen them much, but we saw them at the National Indoors. They are one of the top teams in the country on paper. We know how good they are. We are going to have to come out ready to play. The doubles point is going to be huge against a team like that.”