No. 2 Men's Tennis Clinches Big 12 Regular Season Title in Ft. Worth

FT. WORTH, Texas – No. 2 Baylor men's tennis collected hardware Sunday afternoon as the Bears clinched a share of the Big 12 regular season title with a 5-2 triumph over No. 6 TCU at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center in Ft. Worth.

The Bears (27-4, 4-1) clinched a share of the Big 12 regular season title for the first time since 2015 and 14th time in program history. A win tied the Horned Frogs (15-6, 4-1) and No. 7 Texas (19-4, 4-1) atop the conference standings.

The Bears came out hot in doubles action as No. 19 Constantin Frantzen and Sven Lah upset fourth-ranked Alastair Gray and Luc Fomba, 6-3, at the top of the lineup. Charlie Broom and Finn Bass teamed up to secure the opening point when the duo won 6-3 over Max Kurzban and Jake Fearnley at the No. 3 spot.

BU kept the momentum in singles action as the Bears claimed five of six opening sets. No. 16 Soto made quick work of No. 8 Gray at the No. 2 spot, 6-0, 6-1, while Broom claimed a 6-1, 6-4 win over Tadeas Paroulek on court five for the 3-0 BU advantage.

TCU got on the board as No. 116 Fearnley defeated Lah on court four, 6-2, 7-6(0), but Spencer Furman closed the door as he clinched the win with a 7-6(5), 6-2 triumph over Bertus Kruger at the No. 6 spot.

Playing the remaining matches out, No. 53 Adrian Boitan outlasted No. 15 Fomba for a 7-5, 7-6 win at the top of the lineup while Nick Stachowiak dropped a 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 decision to 72nd-ranked Sander Jong.

To keep up with things all season long, follow the team on social media: @BaylorMTennis.

HIGHLIGHTS
• Baylor brought home its league-leading 14th Big 12 regular season title.
• Baylor’s 2021 regular season title is the program’s first since 2015 and first under interim head coach Michael Woodson.
• The Bears are now 9-1 on the road this season, which includes seven ranked wins.
• The Bears are 24-7 in the doubles point this year and own a 23-1 record in matches when winning the opening tally.
• Baylor boasts a 135-28 combined record in singles play this spring, as well as a 62-21 mark in doubles dual matches.
• BU improved to 27-35 all-time against TCU, including 5-2 against the Horned Frogs in the last seven meetings.
• Spencer Furman is on an eight-match singles win streak with Sunday’s victory.
• Matias Soto improved to a team-best 8-3 against ranked opponents in singles play.
• Constantin Frantzen and Sven Lah are now 5-1 against ranked foes in doubles action.

STAT OF THE MATCH
14 – the number of Big 12 regular season titles for the Bears.

TOP QUOTE
Interim head coach Michael Woodson
On the win and title…
“It felt like we shot out of a rocket in doubles play. They really went for their shots and lived with the result. That’s something I think lacked in the Texas match. We were putting balls away and led TCU from start to finish. Doubles action really set the tone, and we kept our foot on the gas throughout singles play. I’m so proud of the guys. They made it feel like a home match in Ft. Worth. We took care of business and are heading home with another one for the trophy case. It’s very impressive what our team accomplished today on the road.”

WHAT’S NEXT
Baylor will host the Big 12 Championship from April 24-26 at Hurd Tennis Center in Waco. The full bracket will be released at a later date.