TicketsCINCINNATI - The University of Cincinnati tennis team is scheduled to play 21 matches in 2018, including eight at home, head coach Eric Toth announced today. The Bearcats, who finished 2017 with a 17-7 overall record, will look to continue to build upon last year's success that saw UC finish the year ranked #9 in the ITA Ohio Valley Region for the first time.
"The upcoming season promises to be a very exciting one for our program," Toth said. "We are very young, but I think what our team proved over the Fall, particularly in our Regional event, is that we will be able to compete with anyone we run into. How well we do will all depend on the work everyone puts in over the next couple of months heading into our opener in January, how healthy our group will remain over a long season, and how opportunistic we will be when it matters most from match to match. We will need to respect everyone we run into and be ready for everyone's best shot. That is the only attitude a program should have because anything less will leave you disappointed at the end of the day as good as everyone is in today's game.
"The end result for any schedule you put together is to prepare you to be at your best at the end of the year as you enter your conference tournament," Toth continued. "We will certainly have to be at our best in April as I believe at the end of the year, The American will prove to be among the top conferences in the country in all of college tennis. I look forward to see how our group responds to the challenges a team faces over a long season."
The Bearcats open their schedule with a pair of matches on the road as they will face both Purdue and Butler on their respective home courts, January 13 and 14, respectively. Fans won't have to wait long for UC to play at home as the Bearcats will welcome Wright State to the Western Tennis and Fitness Club on January 20 for a 5 p.m. contest with the Raiders. Following a pair of road contests that consist of a drive up I-75 to Dayton on January 21 to face the Flyers before a contest at Indiana, the #7 team in the 2017 Ohio Valley Region rankings, is held January 27 in Bloomington, Ind.
February will see the Bearcats play host to four matches in a row at the Western Tennis and Fitness Club starting with a February 2 showdown with rival Miami at 5 p.m. The next day, UC will play host to Lipscomb. The first AAC match of the year will be held February 8 as Memphis will come to town for a 1 p.m. rematch of last year's AAC Tournament quarterfinal that the Bearcats won, 4-1. The home stand comes to a close February 16 with Toledo coming to town at 5 p.m.
UC will close February with a trio of matches on the road, including a February 17 meeting with Eastern Kentucky to start a seven-match road swing. UC will travel to Philadelphia on February 23 and 24 to face St. Francis and AAC foe Temple, respectively. March will see back-to-back trips that will feature two matches at one location, starting with a trip to Huntington, W.Va., on March 2 and 3 to take on Marshall, the #5 team in the Atlantic Region, before meeting VCU, the Atlantic's #7 team, one day later. The following week, the Bearcats will venture to Tampa, Fla., where they will meet UTEP on March 13 and then conference foe USF on March 14 in the final match of the road trip.
Upon returning to Cincinnati, the Bearcats will play their final three home matches, all of which are slated to be held at the Talbert/Trabert Tennis Center on campus. UC will open with Western Kentucky at 3 p.m. on March 23 before welcoming crosstown rival Xavier to campus for a 3 p.m. match on March 28. April 4 will see Northern Kentucky cross the river and come to UC for a 3 p.m. contest. The regular season will come to a close April 14 and 15 in Storrs, Conn., as UC will play a pair of AAC foes. First, the Bearcats will meet ECU on the 14th before playing host UConn on the 15th.
With the regular season in the books, the Bearcats will venture to Dallas, Texas, April 18-21, for the AAC Tournament. Last year, UC earned the #4 seed and a bye in the first round before defeating Memphis. The Bearcats fell to #1 Tulsa, 4-0, in the semifinals to see their season end. This year, the field will expand to 12 schools as Wichita State, who was ranked #6 in the Central Region one year ago, joins the American.
// FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
GoBearcats.com is your one-stop destination for all things UC Athletics. Socially, the team can also be followed on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram with all using the handle GoBearcatsWTEN.
// EXPERIENCE UC
The University of Cincinnati department of athletics announced an initiative entitled Experience UC, geared toward inviting the community to campus to see firsthand the great things about and surrounding the university. Experience UC includes complimentary admission for patrons attending women's basketball, lacrosse, volleyball, women's tennis, men's and women's soccer, swimming and diving and track and field home events.
"The upcoming season promises to be a very exciting one for our program," Toth said. "We are very young, but I think what our team proved over the Fall, particularly in our Regional event, is that we will be able to compete with anyone we run into. How well we do will all depend on the work everyone puts in over the next couple of months heading into our opener in January, how healthy our group will remain over a long season, and how opportunistic we will be when it matters most from match to match. We will need to respect everyone we run into and be ready for everyone's best shot. That is the only attitude a program should have because anything less will leave you disappointed at the end of the day as good as everyone is in today's game.
"The end result for any schedule you put together is to prepare you to be at your best at the end of the year as you enter your conference tournament," Toth continued. "We will certainly have to be at our best in April as I believe at the end of the year, The American will prove to be among the top conferences in the country in all of college tennis. I look forward to see how our group responds to the challenges a team faces over a long season."
The Bearcats open their schedule with a pair of matches on the road as they will face both Purdue and Butler on their respective home courts, January 13 and 14, respectively. Fans won't have to wait long for UC to play at home as the Bearcats will welcome Wright State to the Western Tennis and Fitness Club on January 20 for a 5 p.m. contest with the Raiders. Following a pair of road contests that consist of a drive up I-75 to Dayton on January 21 to face the Flyers before a contest at Indiana, the #7 team in the 2017 Ohio Valley Region rankings, is held January 27 in Bloomington, Ind.
February will see the Bearcats play host to four matches in a row at the Western Tennis and Fitness Club starting with a February 2 showdown with rival Miami at 5 p.m. The next day, UC will play host to Lipscomb. The first AAC match of the year will be held February 8 as Memphis will come to town for a 1 p.m. rematch of last year's AAC Tournament quarterfinal that the Bearcats won, 4-1. The home stand comes to a close February 16 with Toledo coming to town at 5 p.m.
UC will close February with a trio of matches on the road, including a February 17 meeting with Eastern Kentucky to start a seven-match road swing. UC will travel to Philadelphia on February 23 and 24 to face St. Francis and AAC foe Temple, respectively. March will see back-to-back trips that will feature two matches at one location, starting with a trip to Huntington, W.Va., on March 2 and 3 to take on Marshall, the #5 team in the Atlantic Region, before meeting VCU, the Atlantic's #7 team, one day later. The following week, the Bearcats will venture to Tampa, Fla., where they will meet UTEP on March 13 and then conference foe USF on March 14 in the final match of the road trip.
Upon returning to Cincinnati, the Bearcats will play their final three home matches, all of which are slated to be held at the Talbert/Trabert Tennis Center on campus. UC will open with Western Kentucky at 3 p.m. on March 23 before welcoming crosstown rival Xavier to campus for a 3 p.m. match on March 28. April 4 will see Northern Kentucky cross the river and come to UC for a 3 p.m. contest. The regular season will come to a close April 14 and 15 in Storrs, Conn., as UC will play a pair of AAC foes. First, the Bearcats will meet ECU on the 14th before playing host UConn on the 15th.
With the regular season in the books, the Bearcats will venture to Dallas, Texas, April 18-21, for the AAC Tournament. Last year, UC earned the #4 seed and a bye in the first round before defeating Memphis. The Bearcats fell to #1 Tulsa, 4-0, in the semifinals to see their season end. This year, the field will expand to 12 schools as Wichita State, who was ranked #6 in the Central Region one year ago, joins the American.
// FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
GoBearcats.com is your one-stop destination for all things UC Athletics. Socially, the team can also be followed on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram with all using the handle GoBearcatsWTEN.
// EXPERIENCE UC
The University of Cincinnati department of athletics announced an initiative entitled Experience UC, geared toward inviting the community to campus to see firsthand the great things about and surrounding the university. Experience UC includes complimentary admission for patrons attending women's basketball, lacrosse, volleyball, women's tennis, men's and women's soccer, swimming and diving and track and field home events.