UNT to open NCAA tourney with Frogs

[Harry]

The North Texas tennis team endured a few anxious moments Tuesday while watching the NCAA tournament selection show.

UNT went into the day hoping to play close to home in the first round, and to receive a good matchup.

The Mean Green felt like it ended up in a good spot on both accounts when it found out it would face a familiar rival in TCU at 9 a.m. May 11 at Texas A&M. The Aggies, the No. 3 national seed, will face Southern in the other first-round match at the regional.

TCU beat UNT 4-2 in Denton earlier this year. The Mean Green edged the Horned Frogs 4-3 last year in Fort Worth.

“They are a very talented team, but at the same time we are playing good tennis,” UNT coach Sujay Lama said. “This is a great opportunity for us. The good thing is our fans can come there. We travel well. Hopefully, we will have 50 to 100 people out there.”

UNT earned a spot in the NCAA tournament by winning the Sun Belt Conference tournament for the second straight year and the third time in four seasons. The Mean Green edged South Alabama 4-3 in the semifinals and beat Georgia State 4-2 in the final.

UNT fell to Nebraska 4-0 last season and lost to Tulsa by a 4-2 score in 2010.

The Mean Green will look to break through in its third tournament appearance while taking on a familiar opponent in the Horned Frogs.

“It’s good for us to play a team we have played before,” said Kseniya Bardabush, a sophomore who has played at No. 1 singles for UNT throughout the season. “We know what to expect and know their players.”

UNT won the doubles point in the team’s first meeting this year and picked up a win at No. 3 singles from Barbora Vykydalova.

TCU pulled away for the win by winning three straight singles matches, including two that were tight throughout. Bardabush fell to Stefanie Tan 7-5, 7-6, while Ilona Serchenko lost to Millie Nichols 7-5, 7-5.

“We have had an intense last couple of years against TCU,” Lama said.

Read more: http://www.dentonrc.com/sports/colleges/north-texas-headlines/20130430-unt-notebook-unt-to-open-ncaa-tourney-with-frogs.ece

[JesseMartin]

Are 50-100 fans generally considered a good traveling fanbase for tennis?

[KRAM1]

Are 50-100 fans generally considered a good traveling fanbase for tennis?

Probably as I saw fewer than 100 fans at UNT home tennis matches attending at the matches I attended this season. Funny thing is...the matches are free of charge and they feed you! Ha! True...really great fun to watch as these ladies are really good.

[JesseMartin]

they feed you!

I can't believe this fact eluded me until now. Students, take note...yes, you get in free to all athletics events anyway, but sports, girls, AND food? There's something for everybody! Definitely not saying you should skip all of your classes to go to more games and matches (and I've seen that happen), but hey, if you are available, don't worry about meal plans, etc if you're a broke college student - you can support your fellow students and get something to eat!

Not sure about you guys, but I was pretty broke for most of college and food at events was a big draw whether I was interested or not! Pretty sure I would've skipped a "normal" lunch on my meal plan to go to a tennis match if I'd known!

[ragpicker]

Promotion and marketing. (And maybe free transportation.) PUSH THESE EVENTS!

[untbowler]

Are 50-100 fans generally considered a good traveling fanbase for tennis?

For a mid-major that is actually very good.

I was in Oxford, MS 8 times this spring and they usually had around 200-300 fans, so what Lama has done to get 50-100 fans is actually quite impressive.

Texas A&M has typically been in the Top 2-3 on attendance, but the numbers can be subjective when there are no tickets handed out.

[NT03]

Not till NEXT Saturday ? That's a long lay off , no ?

[untbowler]

will be good for the ladies to have a break after a long season, this year the guys are Fri-Sat, so headed to Oxford for Ole Miss/Lehigh and BYU/Memphis.

Good luck to the ladies dehorn the horny toadettes