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NCAA Tennis Progress
oth Baylor tennis teams are through to the round of 16 in the NCAA tennis tournaments. The men shut out both Bryant and LSU over the weekend, improving their record when hosting NCAA matches to 24-0 all-time. To maintain that record, a national championship will be required. Baylor is now 25-2 in the doubles point this season, by far its strongest area of competition.
The men's competition continues on Thursday against No. 18 South Florida at 7 p.m. at the Hurd Tennis Center. A win sends Baylor to the Elite Eight.
VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS. #NCAAMWT http://t.co/b3DredeJmh
— BaylorMTennis (@BaylorMTennis) May 10, 2015
Meanwhile, the women had nearly as impressive of a showing in their advancement. An easy shutout of Northwestern State kicked off the tournament, but Rice put up more fight than expected, storming out to take the doubles point and picking up a singles point as well before the Bears put them down. Coach Scrivano was disappointed in the performance, which ended much closer than the previous two matchups with Rice this season (especially since Baylor lost its first doubles point in over a month) but conceded that a win is a win at this point in the season.
The next match is on Thursday at 7 p.m. against Virginia. Baylor's ranking and seeding are nearly identical to the Cavaliers, with Virginia holding the eight place in the rankings but the ninth seed (and the reverse for Baylor). Baylor holds something of a psychological advantage after their dismantling of the Cavs in January by a margin of 6-1.
HIGHLIGHTS: @BaylorWTennis fights off No. 28 Rice, 4-2 as BU advances to 11th #NCAAMWT Sweet 16. http://t.co/VcTzYm8Aek
— BaylorSESP (@BaylorSESP) May 11, 2015
Women's Golf Wins First Ever Regional Title
The Baylor women appear to be peaking at the right time for a national championship run after taking their first ever NCAA regional title and advancing to the NCAA Championships later this month in Bradenton, Florida. Hayley Davis was also the first Baylor player to win a Regional Final as a singles player, finishing a school-record 16-under-200. It's Baylor's first regional title but marks its second trip to an NCAA Championship round under Coach Jay Goble, and third all time.
Recap of Baylor's first-ever NCAA Regional title: http://t.co/7fJjcVZJeK #SicEm #NCAAGolf pic.twitter.com/tq9VNGTGMt
— Baylor Women's Golf (@BaylorWGolf) May 10, 2015
Softball Headed to Lafayette for Regional
The postseason will be difficult for Baylor softball, a team that has been mostly strong but suffers from serious depth issues in the pitching staff. Of the four teams invited to the regional (Baylor, Mississippi State, Weber State, and Louisiana Lafayette) only one will advance to the super-regional level of competition, and ULaLa is the heavy favorite after beating Baylor earlier this season. One of the keys to the weekend for Coach Moore will be the conservation of Heather Stearns, who is the Bears' best hope for advancement. If Baylor can down MSU and Weber State without exhausting their star pitcher, they stand a fighting chance against the Ragin' Cajuns. The opening game will be on Friday against Mississippi State (35-9, 10-14 SEC).