Cougars Finish MWC Season With Three-Match Weekend

PROVO, Utah (April 10, 2002) ? The BYU men?s tennis team will finish off its Mountain West Conference season this weekend with three matches in three days. The Cougars (11-7, 2-0) will take on Utah, No. 56 UNLV and No. 32 San Diego State beginning Thursday, with all the matches taking place at the Canyon Racquet Club in Salt Lake City.

The three matches will play a major part in deciding the pairings for the upcoming MWC tournament. While BYU currently has the inside track on the No. 1 seed with an undefeated conference record, several other teams in the MWC have a chance to take over the No. 1 spot.

?There?s no clear-cut favorite right now,? BYU head coach Jim Osborne said. ?Until this weekend is over, nobody really knows what the seedings are going to be for the tournament.?

The Cougars begin their play Thursday at 2 p.m. against in-state rival Utah. The two teams matched up in the fall season at the BYU Invitational, but this time will be different. At the BYU Invitational, it was an individual tournament, while this match will be a key team meeting.

?We know they?re going to be up for us,? Osborne said. ?Our goal is to be pumping on all cylinders.?

Friday, BYU will face No. 56 UNLV at 10 a.m. The MWC season will conclude for the Cougars when they take on No. 32 San Diego State Saturday at 10 a.m.

The San Diego State match will be a rematch of the finals of the National Team Indoor Qualifier, where the Aztecs edged BYU 4-3.