Lady Bison to Test Augie Saturday

OKLAHOMA BAPTIST (14-4) in NCAA Central I Regional

1 PM | Saturday | April 28 vs. Augustana (21-3)

1 PM | Sunday | April 29 | OBU-Augustana winner vs. Northeastern State (18-4)

Northeastern State Tennis Complex | Tahlequah, Oklahoma

Live Scoring | Tournament Central | NCAA Program

SHAWNEE – First-year Oklahoma Baptist coach Nick Papac takes the Lady Bison tennis team to its first-ever NCAA Tournament Saturday, playing in Central Region I in Tahlequah.
 
OBU opens with Augustana at 1 p.m. and a win would propel them into a match against host Northeastern State at 1 p.m., Sunday.
 
Augustana is the fifth seed in the Central Region and OBU is the fourth seed. NSU is the No. 1 seed. The winner of Central Region I will advance to the round of 16 in Surprise, Arizona.
 
Augustana enters the tournament with a 21-3 record and went 11-0 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. Kornelia Stanszewska went unbeaten in 17 singles matches – all at No. 1. They went 103-16 in singles and 60-12 in doubles for the year and in conference went 65-0 in singles and 33-0 in doubles.
 
 "We just need to keep playing aggressively and keep having fun. It will be a tough match, no doubt," said Papac. "We couldn't be more excited for the match and to represent OBU in the NCAA Tournament.
 
Kateryna Shkot enters at 6-0 in No. 1 singles and 14-3 overall. She is on a seven-match win streak, as are Madeleine Boepple and Alex Bowers.
 
Shkot and Kim Moosbacher have won eight consecutive matches at No. 1 doubles and are 14-2 on the season.
 
The Lady Bison are 14-4 on the season. Among those four losses are one-point setbacks at No. 12 Drury and at No. 17 Central Oklahoma and a one-point loss at Cameron.
 
Oklahoma Baptist beat Northeastern State in Tahlequah last season, 5-4, ending a 33-match home win streak for the RiverHawks. Both OBU and Northeastern State scored one-sided victories over Washburn, Lindenwood and Southeastern Oklahoma State this season.
 
"Our girls know what it feels like to win there," Papac said, "and not many people do. We're just taking it one match at a time though."
 
Northeastern State is ranked seventh in the Oracle/ITA Division II Women's Computer Rankings. OBU is ranked 31^st and Augustana 49^th.
 
Tatjana Stoll of NSU is ranked eighth in singles, followed by Staniszewska at No. 14, Mayra Jovic of NSU at No. 35, Moosbacher at No. 49 and Shkot at No. 55.
 
Shkot and Moosbacher are ranked No. 20 in doubles, Molly Worden and Stoll are No. 22 for NSU, AU's Staniszewska and Berkley Darr are No. 44 and NSU's Karla Tomaic and Jovic are No. 50.
 
The Lady Bison earned their first trip to the NCAA Tournament with a two-match championship run through the Great American Conference Tournament.