No. 4 Kansas faces No. 5 Baylor in Big 12 Championship
AUSTIN, Texas – The No. 4-seeded Kansas women’s tennis team kicks off postseason play against No. 5 seed Baylor at 9 a.m., Friday in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Championship hosted at the Texas Tennis Center in Austin, Texas.
KU enters the postseason ranked No. 18 by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) with a 15-5 overall record, including 7-2 against Big 12 opponents and 2-0 at neutral sites.
“As I mentioned last week, tournament time is an exciting time,” said head coach Todd Chapman. “It’s a change of pace. It’s something new. We’re very excited to be in Austin to play in the Big 12 Championship.”
Facing Baylor in the 2018-conference opener, the Jayhawks downed the Bears, 4-1, in Lawrence at the Jayhawk Tennis Center. BU leads the all-time series between the two programs, 22-7.
Leading KU into its first postseason match is Despoina Vogasari, who is on a nine-match win streak and has a 12-4 record in dual competitions, compiled from the No. 1 and 2 positions. Nina Khmelnitckaia has appeared in the lineup on courts two and three to tally a 12-5 dual mark, including 7-1 in her last 10 matches with two going unfinished.
Maria Toran Ribes and Vogasari have teamed up for a 12-3 record in duals and have won two-straight matches at the No. 3 spot.
“Baylor is a very worthy opponent,” said Chapman. “We know we’ll have a tough task in front of us with them. It’s something we’re excited about and looking forward to. We’re going to go out and compete the best we can to hopefully put ourselves in positive situations that allow us to be successful.”
The Bears ended regular-season competition ranked No. 26 by the ITA, along with a 16-12 mark and a 4-5 Big 12 Conference record. Baylor enters the match after a, 4-0, loss against Texas at the Texas Tennis Center.
Camilla Abbate holds an 18-6 dual-match record, seeing time at the two, three and four positions. Jessica Hinojosa and Livia Kraus have each tallied 15-4 dual marks by playing at various spots in the lineup for Baylor.
With a win, the Jayhawks would advance to play in the semifinal match Saturday at 3 p.m., versus the victor of No. 1-seeded Texas and No. 8 TCU. The championship match is set for 1 p.m., Sunday.
Live scoring will be available for the match with the Jayhawks competing on the North Courts at the Texas Tennis Center. Visit the KU tennis schedule page on KUAthletics.com for more information.
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