Univ. of Texas at Austin Team Page
IRVING, Texas - No. 17 Texas was picked third in the Big 12 men's tennis preseason coaches' poll released on Monday.
No. 11 Oklahoma, last year's regular season and tournament champion, was selected as the league favorite with five first-place votes and 25 points. The Longhorns tallied 18 points in the poll, two points behind No. 22 Baylor. Coaches are not allowed to vote for their own team in the poll.
The Longhorns (12-5) begin conference play this weekend at Oklahoma on Friday, followed by a trip to Oklahoma State on Sunday. The Cowboys are picked to finish sixth in the Big 12 preseason poll.
Conference newcomer, 36th-ranked TCU, was chosen fourth with 13 points and No. 39 Texas Tech was chosen fifth with nine points.
Five of the six Big 12 men's tennis teams are currently ranked in the top 40 of the ITA Team Rankings. The conference boasts 13 ranked singles players (top 125) - including three from Texas - and 10 ranked doubles teams (top 80) - including two from Texas.
Last season Texas finished fourth in the conference with a 2-3 record. The Longhorns have returned all players from last season's squad, including reigning No. 3 singles Big 12 Champion Sudanwa Sitaram.
