Nov. 11, 2007
ANN ARBOR, MIch. - The Penn State men's tennis team concluded its fall schedule on Sunday at the Big Ten Indoor Singles Tennis Championship at Michigan's Varsity Tennis Center with six victories in consolation play.
By virtue of fulfilling the maximum number of playing dates this fall, the Nittany Lion men's tennis season comes to a close. Penn State will now turn towards dual play in January.
In Sunday's consolation action, senior James Dwyer (Peachtree City, Ga.) received a bye into the round of 32. The Nittany Lion senior knocked off Gregory Holm of Iowa to punch a ticket into the consolation final 16. Dwyer advanced by a score of 6-3, 6-3. He kept the streak alive by defeating Michigan's George Navas in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2, to qualify into the quarterfinals of the consolation draw.
Junior Brendan Lynch (North Potomac, Md.) also received a bye in the first round of consolation play by scoring a win in the first round in the main draw. Lynch scored a 7-6 (4), 7-5 victory over Iowa's Gentry Kaegi in the consolation round of 32. The Lion southpaw moved on to face Wisconsin's Gian Hodgson. He joined Dwyer in the quarterfinals with a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Hodgson.
Joining Lynch and Dwyer in the consolation final 16 was freshman Eddie Bourchier (Hobart, Australia), who first defeated Purdue's Griff Nienberg in the first round of the consolation bracket (6-3, 3-6, 1-0 (8)) to earn a slot in the consolation round of 32. Bourchier then knocked off Iowa's Christian Bierich in three sets (2-6, 6-3, 1-0 (8)) to reach the final 16, where he met Iowa's J.P. Ritchie. Ritchie ousted the Nittany Lion freshman by a score of 6-2, 7-5.
After defeating Purdue's Jose Fuenmayor (7-5, 6-0) late on Saturday in consolation play, freshman Jake Toole (Sharon, Mass.) advanced to the consolation round of 16 on Sunday with a straight sets victory over Purdue's D.J. Johnson, 6-3, 6-1. Toole then took on Luke Rassow-Kantor from Wisconsin. The Lion rookie took Rassow-Kantor into a third-set super-tiebreaker, but ultimately came up short, ending Toole's run in the consolation bracket (6-3, 5-7, 1-0 (6)).
Fellow freshman Jamie Cox (Acworth, Ga.) defeated Iowa's Patrick Dwyer in the first round of consolation play, but suffered a an incredible three-set tiebreak defeat against Michigan's Scott Bruckmann in a round of 32 marathon match(6-7 (4), 7-6, (5), 1-0 (16)).
Sophomores Guillaume St-Maurice (Saint-Eustache, Quebec) and Ryan Gormley (Las Vegas, Nev.) fell out of the consolation draw with first round losses. St-Maurice fell to Iowa's Reinoud Haal, 6-4, 4-6, 1-0 (4). Gormley suffered a 6-2, 6-3 defeat against Iowa's Christian Bierich.
The Nittany Lions will travel to Notre Dame on Jan. 20 to take on the Irish in the season opener.
Big Ten Indoor Singles Championship - November 11, 2007
Consolation Round of 64: (Late Saturday)
Jake Toole (PSU) def. Jose Fuenmayor (PUR), 7-5, 6-0
Reinoud Haal (IOWA) def. Guillaume St-Maurice (PSU), 6-4, 4-6, 1-0 (4)
Jamie Cox (PSU) def. Patrick Dwyer (IOWA), 6-3, 6-2
Eddie Bourchier (PSU) def. Griff Nienberg (PUR), 6-3, 3-6, 1-0 (8)
Christian Bierich (IOWA) def. Ryan Gormley (PSU), 6-2, 6-3
Consolation Round of 32:
Jake Toole (PSU) def. D.J. Johnson (PURDUE), 6-3, 6-1
Scott Bruckmann (MICH) def. Jamie Cox (PSU), 6-7 (4), 7-6 (5), 1-0 (16)
Brendan Lynch (PSU) def. Gentry Kaegi (IOWA), 7-6 (4), 6-3
Eddie Bourchier (PSU) def. Christian Bierich (IOWA), 3-6, 6-3, 1-0 (8)
James Dwyer (PSU) def. Gregory Holm (IOWA), 6-3, 6-3
Consolation Round of 16:
Luke Rassow-Kantor (WISC) def. Jake Toole (PSU), 6-3, 5-7, 1-0 (6)
Brendan Lynch (PSU) def. Gian Hodgson (WISC), 6-1, 6-0
J.P. Ritchie (IOWA) def. Eddie Bourchier (PSU), 6-2, 7-5
James Dwyer (PSU) def. George Navas (MICH), 6-3, 6-2