By Jerry Hill, Baylor Bear Insider. WACO, Texas - The Baylor men's tennis team is all set to make its mark at the Hurd Tennis Center this week with the inaugural fall NCAA Men's and Women's Individual Championships. From Tuesday to Sunday, the action will be in full swing.

Opportunity and Pressure

Coach Michael Woodson admits to feeling stressed initially as Baylor had to earn its way into the singles and doubles tournament. With no automatic bids or wild cards as the host team, the path was uncertain. But the team's hard work paid off as they qualified two doubles teams and a pair of singles entrants.For seniors Marko Miladinovic and Oskar Brostrom Poulsen, who earned a wildcard entry into the main draw of the ITA All-Americans this summer, the pressure is real. "We are really grateful for the opportunity to play here at home," said Miladinovic. "Whenever we travel, we need a couple of days to get used to it. But we've played here so many times, and we love the courts, love the environment."

Singles Competitors

Sophomore Devin Badenhorst earned a singles bid at last week's ITA Sectionals and is set to face Martin Borisiouk of North Carolina State at 9 a.m. on Tuesday. Badenhorst, who is 9-3 with wins over five ranked players, wants to do well in singles but also focuses on doubles. He said, "I feel more prepared now and more ready to go out there and just compete. I'm just going to take it match by match and see how it goes."Brostrom Poulsen will also play in singles, taking on Princeton's Top Nidunjianzan at the same time.

Doubles Teams

The Brostrom Poulsen and Miladinovic duo earned the No. 2 seed for doubles. They began their success this summer by winning the ITA National Summer Championships in Memphis. "They've really just parlayed that into some great doubles that gave them an opportunity to play in the All-American," said Woodson.Devin Badenhorst and Zsombor Velcz were slated the 5-8 seedings. The Badenhorst/Velcz duo went 4-2 at the ITA All-American tournament, including a pair of top-20 wins.In doubles action, which begins on Wednesday, the Brostrom Poulsen and Miladinovic pair will face Ondrej Horak and Karim Al-Amin from Middle Tennessee. Brostrom Poulsen was a two-time All-Conference USA first-team selection in doubles before transferring to Baylor last year.

Player Perspectives

Badenhorst said, "I feel like we've been preparing better than we did then, spending more time on the court together. I'm just going to give it my all and see how it goes."Velcz, who is also the third alternate in singles, likes the switch from spring to fall for the individual championships. He said, "I played NCAAs after a long season, so I had to stay a little bit longer here in the U.S. And I wasn't able to go home like the other guys. So, I think from that side, it's better. I feel like it's a good idea that we have these college tournaments in the fall, too, not just practicing with the team and waiting for the spring season to start."Live scoring and tournament updates can be found at NCAA Tennis 24-25.