BEAUMONT, Texas – After a strong fall campaign, the two-time defending Southland Conference champion Lamar University men's tennis team will begin the hunt for a third title when it opens the spring season with a doubleheader in Stillwater, Okla. The Cardinals will open the season with a match against Bryant University (9 a.m.) followed by a 2 p.m. match against Oklahoma State. Both matches will take place at the Greenwood Tennis Center.
The Cardinals won 11 of their final 14 matches last season to record their second consecutive 17-win campaign. The year ended in the opening round of the NCAA Championships for the second-straight year.
Big Red enters the 2018 season in a situation it hasn't seen in several years. The Cards' 2018 roster is one of the youngest in program history. LU enters the season with just two seniors and four freshmen. In addition, the Cardinals return just three starters from last season's championship squad. The starters include senior Benny Schweizer and juniors Sebastian Santibanez and Logan Powell. The rest of the Cardinals' returners include junior Lukas Grubelnig and sophomore Brock Lauer.
The LU freshmen class will have to take on an integral role this season. The freshmen include Nicolas Mayr (Limburgerhof, German), Carlos Paton Canal (Puertollano, Spain), Arthur Serafim (Bradenton, Fla.) and Roy Stepanov (Ontario, Canada).
The Cardinals open the season against the Bulldogs Sunday, but it won't be the opener for Bryant. When the Bulldogs step on the court to face LU it will be their fifth of six matches within a 48-hour period. Bryant opens the season Friday with doubleheaders against California and Tulsa (both matches will be played in Tulsa, Okla.). The Bulldogs will travel to Norman Saturday for a doubleheader against Creighton and Oklahoma before heading to Stillwater on Sunday to face the Cardinals and OSU.
Bryant posted a 12-14 (.462) mark last season but won their conference with a perfect 4-0 record. The Bulldogs ended 2017 with a 4-0 loss to No. 14 Oklahoma in the opening round of the NCAA Championships.
The Cardinals will close the doubleheader against the No. 15 OSU Cowboys at 2 p.m. Oklahoma State recorded a 22-7 (.759) mark with nine wins over top-25 opponents last year. Two of the team's seven losses came against the nation's second and third ranked teams. Sunday's match against LU will serve as the Cowboys' season opener.
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