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Oklahoma beats Baylor for Big 12 Men's Tennis title

Posted: 8:48 PM Apr 29, 2012
Reporter: Big12Sports.com

In perhaps the longest match in Big 12 Conference Championship history, the Oklahoma Sooners (18-3) claimed their first postseason crown by downing third-seeded Baylor (17-11), 4-3, in a match that lasted five hours and 29 minutes.

In a change from their regular season contest, which OU won 4-3, Baylor took the doubles point to score the early 1-0 advantage. The 11th-ranked Sooner tandem of Costin Paval and Dane Webb made quick work of No. 74 Diego Galeano and Mate Zsiga, 8-3, at the No. 1 spot. From there the Bears would claim doubles position No. 3 with an 8-4 victory by Julian Bley and Marko Krickovic. In the deciding match of the point, Baylor's No. 59 duo of Kike Grangeiro and Roberto Maytin registered an 8-5 upset over 57th-ranked Tsvetan Mihov, 8-5, at the No. 2 spot. The loss in doubles was only the second all year by Oklahoma, but the Sooners would respond to win their 12th straight match.

The teams would split the first four singles matches, before the Sooners tied the match at three points as Mihov knocked off Krickovic, 6-3, 3-6, 6-0, at the No. 3 spot. The focus of the crowd then shifted to the last remaining match on - No. 6 singles. The contest featured a battle of two seniors in Baylor's Julian Bley and Oklahoma's David Pultr. The Sooner, who had not played singles in Saturday's semifinal match, led Bley 5-4 in the second set when the action on court 3 wrapped. Pultr went on to take that second set 7-6(4), after he had lost the first 7-6(6). In the deciding third set, Pultr jumped out to a 5-3 lead, but Bley held serve and next broke the Sooner's serve to square the set at five games. The seniors then both held serve to send the set into a tiebreaker. Bley would get out to a 4-1 lead in the tiebreaker, before Pultr reeled off six straight points for a 7-4 win that gave Oklahoma the crown.

Earlier this year, Oklahoma claimed its first tennis conference title since 1992 by winning the regular season trophy and now the Sooners can claim a postseason crown as well.

Next year's Big 12 Tennis Championships will be at the Headington Family Tennis Center in Norman, Okla. April 25-28, 2013.

Big 12 teams will now wait for the NCAA Championship brackets to be released on Tuesday. The women's selection show begins at 4 p.m. with the men's following at 4:30 p.m.