April 8, 2010
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The 63rd-ranked Penn State men's tennis team (12-6, 1-3) hosts three matches this weekend on the University Park campus. The Nittany Lions will first face No. 26 Michigan on Friday with a 3 p.m. first serve time. Penn State will then have a doubleheader on Sunday, starting with Michigan State at 11 a.m. followed by Bloomsburg at 5 p.m.
Last Time Out: Penn State had a difficult road trip last weekend as it suffered two losses to the No. 44 Minnesota Golden Gophers and the No. 73 Iowa Hawkeyes. In a 6-1 loss to Minnesota, the Golden Gophers won two of the three doubles bouts to gain a 1-0 advantage early in the match. From there, the Gophers won five of the six singles matches to earn a 6-1 victory. Three of the singles matches went to three sets and junior Eddie Bourchier (Hobart, Australia) earned the lone victory for Penn State as he posted a 6-4, 6-2 upset over No. 66 Sebastian Gallego. The Nittany Lions dropped a close 4-3 decision to Iowa in the other match last Sunday. Senior Ryan Gormley (Las Vegas, Nev.), freshman Bryan Welnetz (Laredo, Texas) and senior Guillaume St-Maurice (Saint-Eustache, Quebec) all picked up singles victories for the Nittany Lions.
Scouting Michigan: The 26th-ranked Wolverines head into this weekend's match with a 9-7 overall record and an undefeated 5-0 mark in conference play. Michigan's talented lineup features two ranked singles players. Jason Jung, ranked 41st in the latest ITA Rankings, carries a 7-8 record in singles action, including 4-1 when playing in the No. 2 bout. Evan King enters the match with Penn State ranked 97th. King carries an overall record of 9-7 as he has seen time in the No. 1 and 2 spots. George Navas and Mike Sroczynski are ranked 33rd in the latest double rankings while King and Jung rank 43rd.
All-Time vs. Wolverines: Penn State holds a 7-18 all-time record vs. the Wolverines. Last season, Michigan downed Penn State, 6-1, in Ann Arbor. Penn State last defeated Michigan on March 10, 2007 with a 4-3 victory over the Wolverines.
Scouting Michigan State: The Spartans head into this weekend at 11-9 with a 0-5 record in conference play. Ronnie Hulewicz leads the way for the Spartans as he plays primarily the No. 1 spot for Michigan State. Hulewicz carries a 12-8 mark in dual matches this year.
All-Time vs. the Spartans: Penn State holds an 18-9 all-time vs. Michigan State. Last season, the Nittany Lions sealed a 5-2 victory over the Spartans in East Lansing. The last time Michigan State defeated Penn State was on April 14, 2007, as Sparty knocked off Lions, 4-3.
Scouting Bloomsburg: The Huskies head to Happy Valley with an 8-3 record and a 3-0 mark in conference play. Bloomsburg is currently riding a four-match win streak and are coming off a 9-0 victory at West Chester.
All-Time vs. the Huskies: Penn State has a commanding 26-4 all-time advantage over Bloomsburg. Last season, Penn State garnered a 7-0 victory over Bloomsburg. The last time the Nittany Lions lost to the Huskies was on April 10, 1990, in a 7-2 loss. The Huskies are led by Ricky Dove, who holds an 8-3 record in singles competition.
What's Next: Following this weekend's matches, Penn State returns home again next weekend for a pair of Big Ten matches vs. Illinois and Indiana. The Nittany Lions will conclude their regular season on the weekend of April 23 with a pair of road matchups with Wisconsin and Northwestern.