March 13, 2011
University Park, Pa. - The Penn State men's tennis team regained its winning ways Sunday, sweeping a doubleheader against Navy (11-7) and Villanova (0-9) at the Penn State Indoor Tennis Center. The Nittany Lions overpowered both the Midshipmen and Wildcats by a score of 6-1, to even their record for the season (8-8, 0-1). Senior Eddie Bourchier (Hobart, Australia) and sophomore Bryan Welnetz (Laredo, Texas) each earned four victories for the Nittany Lions in the doubleheader.
Penn State 6, Navy 1
The Nittany Lions began the first match quickly, jumping out to an early lead behind convincing doubles play. Welnetz and junior Chris Hasyn (Lansdale, Pa.) teamed up in third doubles to overpower Jeremy New and Heyward Drayton. The pair gave Penn State an early advantage by scoring the first four points of the bout and rolling on to an 8-2 victory.
Penn State strengthened its position in first doubles as the duo of Bourchier and freshman Russell Bader (Austin, Texas) combined to overpower Owen Bullard and Nick Birger, 8-5. The decision gave Penn State the doubles point and a 1-0 lead in the match. After the point had been awarded, junior Jason Lee (Sydney, Australia) and freshman C.J. Griffin (Portland, Mich.) fell, 9-7 (3), to Nicholas Gutsche and Marcus Rebersak in a hard fought match that required a tiebreaker.
The Nittany Lions turned to singles action leading 1-0, looking for a much needed victory. Bader rose to the occasion, throttling New (6-1, 6-0) in third singles competition. Bader dominated the match from the start, only allowing a single point in the match, which came after gaining a 5-0 lead in the second set. The win gave Penn State a 2-0 lead.
Lee faired equally well in his first match at no. 1 singles this season, claiming a convincing victory over Owen Bullard (6-2, 6-1). With a 3-0 lead and the momentum firmly in the Nittany Lion's favor, Welnetz took aim at a victory in fourth singles. He only allowed three points to Gutsche in the process of earning the third dominant singles victory of the afternoon for Penn State (6-3, 6-0). The Nittany Lions earned a 4-0 lead and clinched the match with the win.
Once the match had already been decided Penn State continued to roll. Bourchier methodically battled Rebersak in second singles. The Aussie took the first set, 6-4, and never trailed in a back and forth second set before eventually pulling away, 7-5. Freshman Harry Seaborn (North Salem, N.Y.) earned playing time in the sixth singles slot and did not disappoint, overtaking Matt Richmond (6-2, 6-2) to give the Nittany Lions a 6-0 lead.
The Midshipmen earned their lone point of the afternoon in their final attempt. Drayton welcomed on a competitive fifth singles contest from freshman Chris Young (Melbourne, Australia). Young led both sets 6-5 before Drayton eventually forced and won two tiebreakers, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (3).
Penn State 6, Navy 1
Doubles:
1. Eddie Bourchier/Russell Bader (PSU) def. Owen Bullard/Nick Birger (Navy), 8-5
2. Nicholas Gutsche/Marcus Rebersak (Navy) def. Jason Lee/C.J. Griffin (PSU), 8-7 (3)
3. Bryan Welnetz/Chris Hasyn (PSU) def. Jeremy New/Heyward Drayton, 8-2
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2
Singles:
1. Jason Lee (PSU) def. Owen Bullard (Navy), 6-2, 6-1
2. Eddie Bourchier (PSU) def. Marcus Rebersak (Navy), 6-4, 7-5
3. Russell Bader (PSU) def. Jeremy New (Navy), 6-1, 6-0
4. Bryan Welnetz (PSU) def. Nicholas Gutsche (Navy), 6-3, 6-1
5. Heyward Drayton (Navy) def. Chris Young (PSU), 7-6 (2), 7-6 (3)
6. Harry Seaborn (PSU) def. Matt Richmond (Navy), 6-2, 6-2
Order of finish: 3, 1, 4, 1, 6, 5
Penn State 6, Villanova 1
The Nittany Lions continued the trend they set against Navy, taking two of three doubles matches and jumping to an early 1-0 lead. Bourchier and Bader teamed up in first doubles to earn their second victory of the afternoon, easily dispatching Trenton Alenik and Thomas O' Brien, 8-3. Hasyn and Welnetz were equally impressive in second doubles, beating John Drosick and Matt Colonnese (8-4) to clinch the first point of the match for Penn State. After the doubles point had been awarded, junior Taylor Cohen (Philadelphia, Pa.) and Griffin fell in third doubles, 8-5.
Upon clinching the doubles point, Penn State looked to have the same dominance in singles play as they did in the first match. On cue, Griffin earned his first victory of the day by quickly dispatching Colonnese in fourth singles (6-1, 6-3), giving the Nittany Lions a 2-0 lead. Bourchier then put away David Shaheen in the no. 1 singles position (7-5, 6-3) to wrap up his fourth victory of the afternoon and extend Penn State's lead to 3-0.
Attention turned next to Welnetz in second singles who had to weather a tough battle from O' Brien. Welnetz pressed through a hard first set, winning 6-4, before easily securing the second set, 6-0. The win clinched the fourth and deciding point for the Nittany Lions who would not look back.
After the match had been decided, Young scrapped his way to a 6-2, 7-5 victory over Alenik in third singles, widening the lead to 5-0. Hasyn earned a sixth point for the Penn State by routing Andrew Adler (6-0, 6-1) in sixth singles. In the final match of the day, Seaborn dropped the first set against Ryan Peyton before staging a massive comeback from a 5-2 deficit in the second set to eventually win 7-5. He would eventually lose the third set 13-11, giving Villanova its only point of the match.
Penn State 6, Villanova 1
Doubles:
1. Eddie Bourchier/Russell Bader (PSU) def. Trenton Alenik/Thomas O' Brien (Nova), 8-3
2. Chris Hasyn/Bryan Welnetz (PSU) def. John Drosick/Matt Colonnese (Nova), 8-4
3. David Shaheen/Ryan Peyton (Nova) def. Taylor Cohen/C.J. Griffin (PSU), 8-5
Order of finish: 1, 2, 3
Singles:
1. Eddie Bourchier (PSU) def. David Shaheen (Nova), 7-5, 6-3
2. Bryan Welnetz (PSU) def. Thomas O' Brien (Nova), 6-4, 6-0
3. Chris Young (PSU) def. Trenton Alenik (Nova), 6-2, 7-5
4. C.J. Griffin (PSU) def. Matt Colonnese (Nova), 6-1, 6-3
5. Ryan Peyton (Nova) def. Harry Seaborn, 6-4, 5-7, 13-11
6. Chris Hasyn (PSU) def. Andrew Adler (Nova), 6-0, 6-1
Order of finish: 4, 1, 2, 3, 6, 5
The Nittany Lions will remain home next weekend, hosting a doubleheader Sunday, March 20 against Youngstown State at 10 a.m. and Dayton at 3 p.m. Both matches will be played at the Penn State Indoor Tennis Center and admission is free.