Wichita State women's tennis coach Colin Foster announced his team's 2018-19 schedule Tuesday morning.
 
WSU recorded one of its best seasons to date in 2018, knocking of No. 27 Syracuse in the First Round of the NCAA Team Championships in Oxford, Miss. The Shockers advanced to the second round for just the second time in school history, and the first under 10th year head coach Colin Foster. The Shockers look to boost their resume for the postseason in the 2019 season, with a schedule that is one of Foster's toughest to date.
 
Led by junior standout Fatima Bizhukova - who finished the 2017-18 season ranked No. 57 -  WSU will face 14 opponents that finished last season in the ITA/Oracle Team Rankings. Of the 14, five reached the second round of the NCAA tournament, while two teams advanced to the Sweet 16.
 
"We are excited about this year's schedule. In the fall, we have a variety of tournaments that will allow our younger players to continue developing and building their games and allow our more experienced players to be tested against some of the best players in the region and nation," Foster said.
 
The Shockers are slated to take part in six fall tournaments, including the ITA All-American Championships in Pacific Palisades, Calif. (Sep. 29-Oct. 7). WSU will kick off the fall season with trips to Columbia, Mo. for the Mizzou Invite (Sept. 14-16) and the ITA/Oracle Masters on Sep. 20-23 in Malibu, Calif. WSU makes the drive to Iowa City, Iowa, for the ITA Central Regional on Oct. 12-16 followed by the Missouri State Invitational Oct. 26-28. On Nov. 2-4, the Shockers wrap up the fall schedule in Dallas, Texas, for the SMU Red and Blue Challenge.
 
"In the spring our schedule is strong from start to finish," Foster said. "We are excited that we are welcoming several Big 12 teams to Wichita and that is a testament to quality of the program we continue to build."
 
Wichita State's spring schedule includes nine home matches, highlighted by three 2018 NCAA Tournament qualifiers and three Big 12 teams. Coming off a second-round appearance in the NCAA Tournament, Kansas comes to town Feb. 1. The Jayhawks finished the season ranked No. 18. On Feb. 6, Mizzou makes the trip from Columbia to take on the Shockers. WSU won a 4-3 thriller in Columbia a season ago.
 
The Shockers -  in their second season in the American Athletic Conference - will face five conference opponents in the regular season, including SMU at home on Feb. 22 followed by Cincinnati on Feb. 24. 
 
WSU will face one of six Big 12 opponents in Oklahoma State on March 10. The Cowgirls - who ranked No. 14 to end the 2017-18 season – make the trip to Wichita for the first time since the 2012-13 season. WSU looks to avenge a 4-0 loss in Stillwater last season. Gonzaga (March 11) and North Texas (March 23) round out the March home matches for the Shockers.
 
On April 6 and April 15 WSU will host both Oklahoma and Tulsa, respectively. The Sooners invades Wichita for the first time since 2010. The Shockers and Golden Hurricane square off on April 13. Tulsa and WSU met twice last season, with the Golden Hurricane having the upper hand both times, in Tulsa and in the semifinals of the American Athletic Conference Tournament in Dallas. Tulsa recorded one of its best seasons to date in 2018 with NCAA wins over LSU and Oklahoma State.
 
WSU will play 15 of its 24 regular season duals away from Wichita. Eight of those matches will be against opponents that ranked in the top 75 nationally last year. The first of those matches will be on Jan. 19-21 at the Indiana Invitational in Bloomington, Ind. The invite will be an individual tournament, played with a round robin format. The Shockers travel to Austin, Texas, on Jan. 26-27 for ITA Kick-Off Weekend. The field includes Baylor, who the Shockers will play first and Texas and Middle Tennessee. Both Texas and Baylor reached the 2018 NCAA Tournament, while Texas captured the Big 12 Conference Tournament Title and reached the Sweet 16.
 
"Within the conference, we play everyone in the top half of the league, highlighted by our spring break trip to UCF and USF that will help acclimate and familiarize ourselves with the UCF facility that will also be hosting the American Athletics Conference Championship and the final rounds of the NCAA Championships," Foster explained.
 
The Shockers will travel to Florida to take on USF and UCF for a pair of regular season conference matches on March 15 and 17. UCF plays its home matches at the state-of-the-art USTA National Campus, which houses 100 tennis courts in Lake Nona, Fla.
 
Other schedule highlights include:
*A trip south to take on American Athletic Conference opponent Houston on Feb. 8
* A Feb. 10 matchup with Baylor in Waco, Texas
* A trio of matches with Louisville, Nebraska and Creighton in Lincoln on Feb. 16-17
* Doubleheader with Drake and UMKC in Kansas City, Mo. on March 30
* American Athletic Conference Championship in Orlando, Fla., April 17-20