After qualifying for the ITA National Indoor Championships tournament with a 4-0 win over Boise State, the undefeated and No. 4 Aggie men’s tennis team looks to keep their early win streak alive as they travel to Waco to face No. 5 Baylor in their first true test of the young season.
A&M comes into the Wednesday match boasting a 4-0 record, only allowing one point all season and dominating the competition across the board.
This Wednesday however, they will be put to the test against a talented Baylor Bears team who boasts a 5-0 record, including two 7-0 wins in two of their last three matches and their first win over Midwestern State in 17 years.
Baylor also brings some top tier talent of their own in 59^th ranked singles player Max Tchoutakian as well as young talent in redshirt freshman Will Little and true freshman Jimmy Bendeck who are a combined 10-0 in singles matches this season.
The Aggies will rely on their two top 50 talents in the country in 29^th ranked Shane Vinsant and 5^th ranked Arthur Rinderknech, but head coach Steve Denton says that it is their depth throughout the roster that is most potentially dangerous.
“Depth is our biggest issue and possibly our biggest strength as a team,” Denton said. “We have to find a way to get all of our guy’s court time and be smart about getting our guys matches. We have a lot of guys that I am comfortable to put in the lineup.”
The Aggies will also depend on getting off to a quick start and grabbing the first and crucial point in doubles, where they have done so in every match they’ve played so far. Grabbing the first point and the initial momentum will be important against a Baylor team who has struggled at times in doubles play early in the season.
The match is scheduled to begin at 6pm at Hawkins Indoor Tennis Center in Waco.