BYU to Complete Conference Play in California

PROVO -- Another weekend of tough conference play awaits the No. 64 BYU men’s tennis team as it travels to San Diego. The Cougars will compete against No. 38 San Diego State, Air Force and No. 41 New Mexico in their third consecutive three-match weekend.

“We’ve got to be ready to play and play well at every position, every single match,” BYU coach Brad Pearce said.

The team will begin play Thursday against San Diego State. The Aztecs have yet to play a Mountain West opponent after three of their conference matches were postponed because of weather.

SDSU is currently 12-8 on the season and coming off a 5-2 win over UC Santa Barbara. BYU earned the win in a 4-3 decision when the two teams met last season in Provo.

“San Diego State and New Mexico are both good teams that know how to win,” Pearce said.

BYU will then take on Air Force. The Falcons are 0-2 in conference, having lost to UNLV and New Mexico. AFA’s last result was a 6-1 loss to Montana State.

“You can never take Air Force lightly because they always compete well,” Pearce said.

New Mexico will challenge the Cougars Saturday to wrap up the trip. The Lobos are an impressive 15-3 on the season and 2-0 in conference play. They are coming off of a close 4-3 loss to Boise State. BYU fell 4-0 at home last year against UNM.

“The bottom line on this trip is that we’re capable of winning,” Pearce said. “Our guys are going to have to be more patient, points will be longer and they’ll have to work harder.”

All matches will be played at the Fairbanks Ranch Tennis Club. Thursday's match against SDSU starts at 2 p.m. PT. The other matches begin at 9 a.m. PT.