Luke Jensen makes every decision for his team with the Big East tournament in mind. The scheduling, drills and conditioning are all done with the intention of putting Syracuse in a position to knock off Notre Dame.

With no mandated schedule in the Big East, the chance to beat the best teams in the conference doesn’t come until the tournament. Jensen scheduled matches with then-No. 9 Southern California and then-No. 49 William and Mary to get his team battle-tested for a postseason run.

The likes of No. 23 Notre Dame and No. 42 South Florida may not have been on the Orange’s schedule during the regular season. But with an NCAA tournament bid on the line, SU is excited at the possibility of facing these top contenders in a potential postseason run.

‘I think we have the best crew here, I really do,’ Jensen said. ‘Whoever we step up against, it’s going to be tricky for the other side because nobody is this fit, nobody prepares this way and nobody plays the way we do.’

Seventh-seeded Syracuse (16-6 , 8-1 Big East) will take on 10th-seeded St. Johns (9-9, 4-2) in the first round of the Big East tournament Thursday at 9 a.m. in South Bend, Ind. The match marks the first step in SU’s quest to prove that it belongs among the top tier of teams in the Big East. The Orange dominated St. Johns 7-0 during the team’s matchup last month in Queens, N.Y.

Despite an 8-1 conference mark during the regular season, the Big East’s unique parameters for arranging the tournament gave the Orange the No. 7 seed. Jensen said a conference seeding committee makes a judgment on the field largely based on national ranking and strength of schedule.

Jensen said the team’s No. 7 seed means virtually nothing to the team. Syracuse is desperate to prove how competitive it can be within the conference. The confidence trickles down from Jensen to his players.

‘I’d say we’re more of a looming threat to everyone else,’ SU co-captain Emily Harman said. ‘They know we’re there and we’re in the middle of the pack, but we could be at the top of the pack very easily. I think we’re definitely a threat for the title.’

Despite the match being played on the road, SU dropped just one set in its win over the Red Storm on March 26. The Orange was able to assert itself against the inferior conference opponent.

Alessondra Parra, who was playing at the No. 3 singles position at the time, won her match 7-6, 6-1. But after playing in the Big East tournament the past two seasons, Parra said the regular-season match does not dictate how SU or St. John’s will play in a postseason environment.

‘It’s easy to take an opponent that you’ve beaten before for granted,’ Parra said. ‘The challenge is you have to be more focused because it’s the first morning, we play them at 9 a.m., and it’s the kind of thing where they’re good enough to stick it to us and we can’t let our focus slide.’

For Jensen, the confidence his team currently exhibits is paramount to how he feels the team will perform in the tournament. Jensen said confidence plays a key role in the players’ ability to execute. Syracuse has won 17 of its last 18 singles matches and eight of its last nine doubles matches.

With momentum on its side after playing arguably its best tennis of the season down the stretch, SU is prepared for the big moments in its upcoming matches.

‘I know they’re going to be ready for the big points and the defining moments that are going to determine whether we’re going to win or lose a match,’ Jensen said.

With a win in the first round of the tournament Thursday, Syracuse would advance to play second-seeded USF in the quarterfinals. The Bulls won the Big East title in 2007 and are the only team other than the Fighting Irish to win the tournament in the past five seasons.

Syracuse and USF last played in 2009 when Harman and Parra were both freshmen. The Bulls won 6-1. The Syracuse players are desperate for the opportunity to play the Bulls in a quarterfinal match.

‘I’m really excited if it comes down to that, and I’m fired up for that possibility,’ Harman said. ‘They’re someone we need to beat to compete on the next level, and it’s another key opportunity for us to show what we’re all made of and how well we could compete.’

adtredin@syr.edu

Published on April 27, 2011 at 12:00 pm