ORLANDO - Following a strong fall season in which UCF players won four professional titles and two collegiate crowns, the Knights’ women’s tennis team has been selected to finish fourth in the 2024 Big 12 Preseason Poll, the conference office announced Wednesday.
The Knights were selected the highest of the newcomers by the conference coaches, totaling 126 points. Fellow newcomers BYU, Cincinnati and Houston were picked ninth, 13th and 14th, respectively. The fourth-place slot marks the highest for any UCF team in the preseason projections by the Big 12’s head coaches.
The Black and Gold return six players from last year’s NCAA Tournament team and add two freshmen in Olivia Lincer and Mihaela Tsoneva to the mix. The freshmen class was ranked second in the nation by Tennis Recruiting Network, marking the top recruiting class in the Big 12.
UCF will kick off its season Jan. 20 at the USTA National Campus with an opening day doubleheader. The team will first take on No. 20 Georgia Tech at 11 a.m., followed by Bethune-Cookman at 4 p.m.
Full Conference Preseason Rankings
- Oklahoma State (8) - 161 points
- Texas (4) - 160 points
- Oklahoma (1) - 148 points
- UCF - 126 points
- Baylor (1) - 111 points
- Texas Tech - 108 points
- Kansas - 103 points
- TCU - 78 points
- BYU - 66 points
- Kansas State - 64 points
- Iowa State - 46 points
- West Virginia - 44 points
- Cincinnati - 32 points
- Houston - 27 points