Oct. 30, 2008
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State men's tennis team will send three players to this weekend's Big Ten Singles Championship at the University of Wisconsin. Freshman Jason Lee (Melbourne, Australia) and sophomores Jamie Cox (Atlanta, Ga.) and Jake Toole (Sharron, Mass.) will represent the Nittany Lions at the tournament.
Every team except for Ohio State will be represented at this year's event. A total of 64 players will be participating in the tournament, with a 12-player qualifying draw kicking off on Friday. All three Nittany Lions have already qualified and will begin play in the main draw on Saturday. The first and second rounds will be played on Saturday with the third and quarterfinal rounds taking place on Sunday. The semifinal and final rounds will conclude the event on Monday. All competition on Monday can be seen on the Big Ten Network beginning at 9 a.m.
Cox, who has a 3-2 record in singles action this fall, earned a qualifying victory last season at the event, which was held at Michigan. He defeated Minnesota's Derek Peterson to qualify for the main draw, 6-2, 6-4. Toole, who is making his second appearance at the event, is 1-2 in singles action this fall. Last year at the championship, Toole earned a total of three victories, including a 6-4, 6-1 main-draw qualifying victory over Iowa's Dwyer. Lee is 1-4 in fall singles action in his first season with the Nittany Lions.
The Big Ten Singles Championship will conclude the fall season for the Nittany Lions. Penn State will open up spring action on Jan. 18 at N.C. State for an 11 a.m. start. The Nittany Lions first home meet will be Jan. 24 as they take on Saint Bonaventure and Saint Joseph's.