| Michael James knocked off 27th-ranked Devin Mullings from Ohio State in straight sets (6-3, 6-2), notching his third win over a ranked opponent this season. |
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; April 20, 2007 ?C In its first home match outdoors this spring, the 41st-ranked Penn State men??s tennis team battled No. 3 Ohio State, but came up on the short end of a 5-2 decision at Sarni Tennis Center on Friday.
Penn State (15-5, 5-4 Big Ten) fell behind 1-0 after the Buckeyes managed to take the first and third doubles matches. At the No. 2 spot, the Nittany Lion duo of sophomore Adam Slagter (Austin, Texas) and junior James Dwyer (Peachtree City, Ga.) knocked off the 16th-ranked Buckeye team. In singles action, the talented Ohio State team took the first four completed matches, sealing a 5-0 lead. However, Michael James (Clifton, Va.) notched a 6-3, 6-2 victory over 27th-ranked Devin Mullings of Ohio State at the No. 1 spot. The Lions also picked up the No. 6 singles point. Penn State became the first team in the Big Ten this season to score two points against the third-ranked Buckeyes.
??I feel this match got us back on track in terms of how we competed,?? said head coach Todd Doebler. ??Ohio State is a very good team, so for us to knock off a few of their guys should help us gain confidence. I was proud of Adam and James, who knocked off a ranked team in their first match together. In singles, Michael beat another very accomplished player. Hunter was able to beat one of the toughest players in the Big Ten.??
At No. 3 doubles, senior Bradley Hunter (Atlanta, Ga.) and sophomore Brendan Lynch (North Potomac, Md.) suffered an 8-3 setback to Ohio State??s Steven Moneke and Bryan Koniecko. The two teams were on-serve with the score reading 4-3, in favor of Ohio State, when Moneke and Koniecko cruised to the 8-3 triumph.
Senior Ryan Berger (Grand Rapids, Mich.) and James, who are ranked 51st in the latest ITA National Doubles Poll, held a 3-1 lead over the Buckeye duo of Drew Eberly and Justin Kronauge at No. 1. However Eberly and Kronauge, who are ranked 41st in the nation, rallied to take the next four games. From there, the Buckeye duo took control on their way to an 8-5 victory. Berger and James fall to 6-4 on the year. The Buckeye win sealed the doubles point for Ohio State.
In the No. 2 doubles match, Slagter and Dwyer, who were paired together for the first time this season, took the final three games of the pro set to seal the 8-5 victory over Ohio State??s 16th-ranked pair of Mullings and Chris Klingemann.
With the Buckeyes up 1-0, the match moved to singles action. Ohio State took command in the first four completed singles matches, notching four straight-set wins over Nittany Lion players. Slagter suffered a 6-4, 6-2 setback to Moneke, who is the nation??s eighth-ranked player, at the No. 3 spot. The Nittany Lion sophomore is now 18-9 overall this year.
At No. 2, Berger faced off with the Buckeyes?? Koniecko, who is ranked 22nd in the latest ITA National Singles Poll. Berger fell into a 3-0 hole in the first, with Koniecko cruising to a 6-3 edge. In the second, Berger battled with the talented Buckeye, but Koniecko took the set by a score of 6-4. Berger falls to 13-6 in duals this year. Koniecko??s win put the Buckeyes on top by a 3-0 margin.
| Paired together fo the first time on Friday, junior James Dwyer and sophomore Adam Slagter defeated the nation's 16th-ranked doubles team of Devin Mullings Chris Klingemann from Ohio State by a score of 8-5. |
Freshman Ryan Gormley (Las Vegas, Nev.) dropped a straight-set decision to 93rd-ranked Klingemann at No. 4 singles (6-4, 6-3). Despite a valiant effort, the Nittany Lion rookie fell to 14-4 in duals and 6-3 in the Big Ten this season after the loss. Klingemann??s edge notched the match-winning point for Ohio State.
Lynch suffered a straight-set defeat at No. 5 against Kronauge. The Buckeye freshman cruised to a 6-2 edge in the first, and followed that up with a 6-3 edge in the second, sealing Ohio State??s fifth point in the match. Lynch drops to 5-2 this spring.
In the first singles match, James, who is ranked 92nd in the latest ITA National Singles Poll, battled with Mullings. James opened the first by grabbing a break in the second game from the Buckeye lefty. Despite trailing 3-1, Mullings cut into the James lead to set the scoreboard at 4-3. Nonetheless, James halted the rally by taking the next two games in the set (6-3). In the second, James took a 3-0 lead by grabbing a pair of service breaks from Mullings. James slammed the door with power groundstrokes to win going away, 6-2. James?? win marks his third against a nationally-ranked opponent this season. The Nittany Lion standout improves to 26-6 overall, 15-4 in duals and 6-3 in the Big Ten.
??I played well today,?? said James. ??I was able to get some breaks when I needed to. I had some trouble holding serve today, but I stayed focused and I was able to pull off the win.??
Hunter was also victorious in the No. 6 bout. After notching a 7-1 edge in a first-set tiebreaker against Eberly, Hunter controlled the pace in the second to put Penn State on the board for the second time on Friday afternoon. The Nittany Lion senior snagged the second by a score of 6-2. Hunter now holds a 13-5 overall record this season.
With the ?victory Ohio State moves to a stout 23-1 overall and a perfect 9-0 in the Big Ten.
??On Sunday, we will be playing an Indiana squad that has dominated Penn State for the past four years,?? said Doebler. ??It will be important that our guys come out ready to fight for every point.??
Penn State will close out its regular season with a bout against No. 64 Indiana at noon on Sunday. The match at Sarni Tennis Center is free to the public.
Final Score: #3 Ohio State 5, #41 Penn State 2
Doubles
1. #41 Drew Eberly/Justin Kronauge (OSU) def. #51 Ryan Berger/Michael James (PSU), 8-5
2. James Dwyer/Adam Slagter (PSU) def. #16 Devin Mullings/Chris Klingemann (OSU), 8-5
3. Steven Moneke/Bryan Koniecko (OSU) def. Brendan Lynch/Bradley Hunter (PSU), 8-3
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2
Singles
1. #92 Michael James (PSU) def. #27 Devin Mullings (OSU), 6-3, 6-2
2. #22 Bryan Koniecko (OSU) def. Ryan Berger (PSU), 6-4, 6-4
3. #8 Steven Moneke (OSU) def. Adam Slagter (PSU), 6-4, 6-2
4. #93 Chris Klingemann (OSU) def. Ryan Gormley (PSU), 6-4, 6-3
5. Justin Kronauge (OSU) def. Brendan Lynch (PSU), 6-2, 6-3
6. Bradley Hunter (PSU) def. Drew Eberly (OSU), 7-6 (1), 6-2
Order of Finish: 3, 2, 4, 5, 1, 6