Feb. 7, 2010
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA.; - The 56th-ranked Penn State men's tennis team (4-1, 0-0) picked up a 5-2 victory over the Maryland Terrapins at the Penn State Indoor Tennis Center on Sunday. With the victory, the Nittany Lions have now defeated Terps for a second consecutive season.
Penn State came out and won two of the three doubles matches to clinch the doubles point. The Lions then went on to win four of the six singles matches to earn the 5-2 victory. Junior Eddie Bourchier (Hobart, Australia) clinched the match point for the Nittany Lions in the No. 2 bout.
In doubles action, the pairing of senior Ryan Gormley (Las Vegas, Nev.) and freshman Bryan Welnetz (Laredo, Texas) earned the first doubles victory for the Nittany Lions, as they downed Maryland's Mathias Sarrazin and Ian Mansfield, 8-3.
In the No. 1 doubles bout, Bourchier and sophomore Jason Lee (Melbourne, Australia) defeated Maryland's John Collins and Ryan Lissner, 8-3, to clinch the doubles point for the Lions. With the doubles point decided, senior Guillaume St-Maurice (Saint-Eustace, Quebec) and sophomore Taylor Cohen (Philadelphia, Pa.) dropped their match Tommy Laine and Jesse Kiuru, 8-7 (7-4).
With Penn State leading 1-0, the match moved to singles action. In the No. 4 matchup, Welnetz defeated Sarrazin in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2, to give the Lions an early 2-0 advantage. In the No. 3 bout, Lee outdueled Kiuru, 6-3, 6-2 to give Penn State a quick 3-0 lead. Over on court No. 1, Wyss handed Gormley a three-set loss, 2-6, 6-0, 6-4, to cut the Terrapins' deficit to 3-1.
The clinching match came in the No. 2 bout where Bourchier took on Lissner. Lissner had the early advantage on Bourchier, as he stole the first set, 7-6 (5). Bourchier did not let up though, as he took the final sets, 6-3, 6-2, to clinch the match for the Lions.
With the match already determined, St-Maurice picked up a huge 6-2, 4-6, 1-0 (10-6) victory over No. 121 John Collins. The win gave St-Maurice his first ever win vs. a ranked opponent in his Nittany Lion career. The day ended in the No. 6 bout, where Laine knocked off Cohen, 6-4, 6-4, to give the Terrapins a second point.
Penn State will continue its seven-match homestand with Buffalo on Feb. 13. The Nittany Lions will take on St. Bonaventure and Bucknell the following day in a doubleheader. Big Ten season will kickoff for Penn State on March 7 with an 11 a.m. match up with Purdue on the University Park campus. Admission to all Penn State Tennis matches is free.
Final Score: #56 Penn State 5 def. Maryland 2
Doubles:
1) Eddie Bourchier/Jason Lee (PSU) def. John Collins/Ryan Lissner (Maryland), 8-3
2) Tommy Laine/Jesse Kiuru (Maryland) def. Taylor Cohen/Guillaume St-Maurice (PSU), 8-7 (7-4)
3) Ryan Gormley/Bryan Welnetz (PSU) def.Mathia Sarrazin/Ian Mansfield (Maryland), 8-3
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2
Singles:
1) Sergio Wyss (Maryland) def. Ryan Gormley (PSU), 2-6, 6-0, 6-4
2) Eddie Bourchier (PSU) def. Ryan Lissner (Maryland), 6-7 (7-5), 6-3, 6-2
3) Jason Lee (PSU) def. Jesse Kiuru (Maryland), 6-3, 6-2
4) Bryan Welnetz (PSU) def. Mathia Sarrazin (Maryland), 6-3, 6-2
5) Guillaume St-Maurice (PSU) def. #121 John Collins (Maryland), 6-2, 4-6, 1-0 (10-6)
6) Tommy Laine (Maryland) def. Taylor Cohen (PSU), 6-4, 6-4
Order of finish: 4, 3, 1, 2, 5, 6