WOMEN'S TENNIS TO PLAY IOWA STATE AT BIG 12s

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BOULDER - The Colorado women's tennis team begins its second season this Thursday, April 29 against No. 12 seed Iowa State at the Big 12 Tournament hosted by the University of Oklahoma in Norman. The Buffaloes are the No. 5 seed after finishing conference play with a 6-5 record, while the Cyclones were winless in the Big 12 at 0-11. The match begins at 9 a.m. (MDT), with the CU/ISU winner taking on No. 4 and 41st nationally ranked Baylor, April 30 at 11 a.m.

      It's the highest seed for CU under fifth-year head coach Nicole Kenneally and highest since 1999 when the Buffs were a two seed.

      "We're excited to play and looking forward to making a run at this year's tournament," said CU head coach Nicole Kenneally. "Iowa State will be a tough match and if we play well and work hard, there's another tough match waiting for us against Baylor in the next round."

      Since they last played ISU back on April 16 in Ames, CU is 2-1 in its last three matches with victories over Iowa State (6-1), Colorado State (6-1) and a loss at Nebraska (5-2). The Buffs, who have played their last six straight on the road are  3-3 in those matches.

      Iowa State has lost eight in a row and over the last three seasons has dropped 32-straight conference matches with their last win coming March 2, 2002 over Missouri.

      The Buffs may be playing their best tennis since the first half of the season when they won six of seven from Feb. 1 through Mar. 6. They are led at the top of the singles ladder from one through three by Lynzee Kever, Jessica Vanderdys, and Kendra Strandemo. Each has won 11 singles matches at their respective positions in the spring. Kever won 12 matches during spring dual play; Vanderdys won 11 in the spring and 19 overall for the season; and Strandemo, perhaps CU's most consistent player recently, has won seven of her last eight. On Monday, Strandemo was named the Big 12 Conference No. 3 singles position champion.

      The Buffaloes, ranked No. 69 in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) poll hope to display a strong showing at the conference tournament, which will propel them to the NCAA Tournament for the second year in a row.

Notes:

- highest seed (No. 5) under fifth-year head coach Nicole Kenneally

- this season are the most wins for CU in Big 12 play (6-5) and third straight season CU has won 10-plus victories

- CU advanced to the Big 12 Semifinals as the No. 8 seed last year after upsetting top seed Baylor in the quarterfinals. The Buffaloes became the lowest seed since the Big 12 inception to upset a higher seeded team

- CU leads Iowa State, 22-2 since 1981; and 4-1 under Kenneally

- Oklahoma State, seeded No. 3 is the defending champion having defeated No. 2 Texas A&M, 4-1

- Since the Big 12 inception (1997), CU has advanced to the finals once (1998)

- CU's Big 12 history in the Big 12 Tournament: (2003: No. 8 semifinals; 2002: No. 8 first round; 2001: No. 8, quarterfinals; 2000: No. 9, Quarterfinals; 1999: No. 2, Quarterfinals; 1998: No. 3, finals; 1997: No. 5, Quarterfinals).

Big 12 Women's Tournament ? Norman, Okla.

Thursday, Apr. 29 ? All Times Mountain

#8 Texas Tech vs. #9 Kansas, 9 a.m.

#5 Colorado vs. #12 Iowa State, 9 a.m.

#7 Nebraska vs. #10 Oklahoma State, 12:30 p.m.

#6 Missouri vs. #11 Kansas State, 12:30 p.m.

Friday, Apr. 30 (Quarterfinals)

#1 Texas vs. Texas Tech-Kansas winner, 8 a.m.

#4 Baylor vs. Colorado-Iowa State winner, 11 a.m.

#2 Texas A&M vs. Nebraska-Oklahoma State winner, 5 p.m.

#3 Oklahoma vs. #Missouri-Kansas State winner, 2 p.m.

Sat., May 1 (Semifinals)

9 a.m. match winner vs. Noon match winner, 10 a.m.

3 p.m. match winner vs. 6 p.m. match winner, 1:30 p.m.

Sun., May 2 (Finals) Noon