Feb. 5, 2009
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The 44th-ranked Penn State men's tennis squad (2-3) will continue its home string of matches this weekend, hosting No. 32 Virginia Tech, Cornell and Lehigh. The Nittany Lions will take on Virginia Tech on Saturday at noon, followed by two matches on Sunday at 10 a.m. vs. Cornell and 3 p.m. vs. Lehigh. All action will take place at the Penn State Indoor Tennis Center.
Last weekend, Penn State was one of fifteen schools that played host to ITA Kick-Off Weekend. The Lions were downed by two ranked opponents, first being clipped by No. 21 Oklahoma State, 4-3 last Saturday and a tough loss on Sunday to No. 33 Duke, 4-0.
"Coming off a tough set of matches last weekend, our first task is going to be prepared to play a very good Virginia Tech team," said head coach Todd Doebler. "From there we will have to prepare for two more important matches against Cornell and Lehigh."
So far this spring, the Nittany Lions have a combined record of 16-11 in singles play for dual matches and a 9-5 record in doubles. Through five matches, juniors Guillaume St-Maurice (Saint-Eustache, Quebec) and Ryan Gormley (Las Vegas, Nev.) lead the Nittany Lions with three wins a piece in singles action. Leading the way for Penn State in doubles is the pairing of St-Maurice and senior Brendan Lynch (North Potomac, Md.), as the pair has gone 4-0 thus far.
Virginia Tech (1-1) heads to University Park fresh off its appearance at ITA Kick-Off Weekend at Ohio State. In their season-opener against No. 41 New Mexico, the Hokies squeaked out a nice 4-3 victory. The following day, Virginia Tech was clipped by the No. 1 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes, 5-2. In that match, the Hokies' Yoann Re upset the sixth-ranked national player Justin Kronauge in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4.
Penn State and Virginia Tech have built a steady rivalry after playing some close fought matches the past few years. Most recently, Penn State went to Blacksburg last season looking to upset the then 35th-ranked Hokies. The Lions jumped out to a 3-0 lead early with the doubles point and singles match victories by Lynch and Michael James. However, the Hokies stormed back and won the final four singles matches to clinch the victory.
Cornell comes to Penn State this weekend preparing for its first dual match of the season. Last season, the Big Red finished with a 2-5 record in the Ivy League. In the matchup with Penn State last season, the Big Red lost 6-1. Cornell has thirteen returning players from last season. Penn State is 8-26 all-time vs. Cornell.
In the final matchup of the weekend, Penn State will face a Lehigh team that is off to a 0-3 start this season. Last season, the Mountain Hawks finished 6-14, with a 1-5 record in the Patriot League. Penn State is 21-19 all-time vs. Lehigh.
Following this weekend, Penn State will open up the Big Ten season making a trip to West Lafayette, Ind. to take on the Purdue Boilermakers on Sunday, Feb. 22. Following the match at Purdue, the Lions will have a much needed break before hosting the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes on March 5.