Islanders Head to Baylor for NCAA Tournament

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women's tennis team hit the road on Thursday morning, headed for its third NCAA Tournament appearance in the past four seasons. The Islanders will challenge No. 16 Baylor on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. in Waco, the second time the Islanders and Bears have clashed in the opening round.
 
The Islanders earned the trip to Waco by dominating the Southland Conference for a second straight season. The Islanders went 10-1 in Southland play during the regular season in 2017 and were a perfect 3-0 against conference foes at the tournament. Combined over the past two seasons, the Islanders went 27-1 against Southland opponents.
 
Overall, Corpus Christi boasts an impressive 44-3 mark over the past two seasons. One of those losses came at the hands of eventual 2016 National Champion Stanford. That match came in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament a season ago and it's a reason for confidence heading into Saturday for the Islanders.
 
"We played Stanford a good, competitive match and they were national champions," said Director of Tennis Steve Moore who is leading a ninth Islanders squad to the NCAAs. "What it really does is validate the point of 'let's focus on us, let's max out the things we can control'. If we squeeze all the juice out of our orange and every girl plays every point with intensity, we can play with anyone and we believe that."
 
On Saturday, the Islanders and Bears will meet for just the second time ever. The only previous meeting was in the 2014 NCAA Tournament, where the Bears earned a 4-0 victory. This year, the Islanders are not NCAA newcomers, instead, the Blue and Green is back in the dance for a second consecutive season with the senior class making its third trip.
 
"It's amazing," said Judit Vives who is one of those seniors in her third NCAA Tournament. "Not everyone can say they've been to three NCAAs. This is my last year and I'm just looking to enjoy it and play my best. Maybe we can pull off a surprise, I don't know, but I am super excited."
 
For Vives, this NCAA Tournament is even a little sweeter after suffering a knee injury on the final weekend of the regular season.
 
"Honestly, when we were playing Northwestern State and I fell I thought I was going to be done for the season," said Vives. "When I saw the MRI results, I was really excited and happy to get back to the courts. Since then, I've fought and been focused every point because I didn't want to get hurt any more. I think that's why I played so well at the end."
 
Fighting every point – it's the Islander way. While No. 16 Baylor certainly poses a formidable challenge, the Islanders do not plan on any groundbreaking changes to the game plan.
 
 "We never get into results and just focus on maxing out the things we can control, playing each point separately with tenacity and intelligence like a warrior," said Moore. "I believe in this team and I believe if they do that, they can compete with anyone in the country."
 
The Islanders have been to there, now they're looking to take the next step. Saturday presents the next opportunity to add another notch in the impressive legacy of Islanders tennis.

"We've been working very hard the entire year for this," said junior Jelena Dzinic. "We give our best at every practice. We're very motivated and excited to play this weekend. We're going to give our best one more time to represent the school the very best we can."
 
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