Baylor men’s tennis has been picked to finish third in the Big 12 Men’s Tennis Preseason Coaches’ Poll, announced by the conference office Friday morning.
TCU and Texas are tied for the preseason favorites with 23 points apiece with three first-place votes each, followed by Baylor with 14. Oklahoma State came in fourth with 12 points, and Oklahoma and Texas Tech were picked fifth with nine points each.
The Bears finished tied for third a season ago with a 2-3 conference record, knocking off then-No. 16 Oklahoma at home and upending then-No. 8 Texas in Austin. BU has finished third or better in Big 12 play in 19 of 21 seasons under head coach Matt Knoll.
Coming in at No. 11 in the ITA preseason team rankings, the Bears are the third-highest ranked Big 12 team behind Texas (8) and TCU (10).
Baylor welcomes back five letterwinners from last season’s NCAA Sweet 16 squad, including juniors Will Little, Jimmy Bendeck and Johannes Schretter. BU adds four freshmen this season in Akos Kotorman, Roy Smith, Sven Lah and Matias Soto.
The Bears open the 2018 season with a doubleheader against UMKC Saturday, Jan. 20. The matches will be played at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. CT, respectively.
For the latest information on the Baylor men's tennis team, follow the team on social media: @BaylorMTennis.
2017 BIG 12 PRESEASON POLL
1. TCU (3) 23
Texas (3) 23
3. BAYLOR 14
4. Oklahoma St. 12
5. Oklahoma 9
Texas Tech 9
