March 20, 2011
University Park, Pa. - The Penn State men's tennis team extended its winning streak to four Sunday afternoon, sweeping a doubleheader against Youngstown State (6-1) and Bloomsburg (7-0). With two doubles victories on the day, senior Eddie Bourchier (Hobart, Australia) tied the career record for doubles victories at 78 wins, set previously by Michael James (2004-2008). Bourchier and freshman Russell Bader (Austin, Texas) each earned four victories for the Nittany Lions in the doubleheader.
Penn State 6, Youngstown State 1
Penn State got off to a blazing start against the Penguins, rolling through the doubles portion to take the first point of the match. Junior Jason Lee (Sydney, Australia) and sophomore C.J. Griffin (Portland, Michigan) started off the day well as they teamed up in third doubles to shut out Zeeshan Ismail and Rob Emig (8-0) to set the tone.
The Nittany Lions continued their strong play when the No. 1 doubles duo of Bourchier and Bader outworked Tariq Ismail and Max Schmerin. The pairs' 8-3 win not only clinched the doubles point for Penn State but also moved Bourchier to 77 career doubles triumphs, one win shy of the Penn State career doubles victories record (78).
After the point had been awarded, sophomore Bryan Welnetz (Laredo, Texas) and junior Christopher Hasyn (Lansdale, Pa.) posted another dominate victory, an 8-2 decision that completed a sweep of doubles play.
Leading 1-0, Penn State turned to singles play looking deliver a third consecutive victory. Bourchier started the Nittany Lions off right, easily taking his first singles match against Tariq Ismail (6-3, 6-1). Lee then extended the lead to 3-0 after making short work of Felipe Rosa (6-2, 6-4) in the No. 2 singles bout.
Seeking the clinching point, Penn State turned to Bader in fourth singles. Bader breezed through the first set, easily winning 6-2. He then put away Zeeshan Ismail, taking the second set 6-4 and giving the Nittany Lions a 4-0 lead.
Once the match had been decided, Welnetz topped Schmerin in third singles (6-2, 6-3) to extend the lead to 5-0. Youngstown State finally got on the board in fifth singles as Rodrigo Campos handed Griffin a frustrating loss (6-2, 6-4). Finally, freshman Chris Young (Melbourne, Australia) battled past Rob Emig, rallying after allowing three straight points in the second set to take sixth singles (6-2, 7-5).
Penn State 6, Youngstown State 1
Doubles:
1. Eddie Bourchier/Russell Bader (PSU) def. Tariq Ismail/Max Schmerin (YSU), 8-3
2. Bryan Welnetz/Chris Hasyn (PSU) def. Felipe Rosa/Rodrigo Campos (YSU), 8-2
3. Jason Lee/C.J. Griffin (PSU) def. Zeeshan Ismail/Rob Emig (YSU), 8-0
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2
Singles:
1. Eddie Bourchier (PSU) def. Tariq Ismail (YSU), 6-3, 6-1
2. Jason Lee (PSU) def. Felipe Rosa (YSU), 6-2, 6-4
3. Bryan Welnetz (PSU) def. Max Schmerin (YSU), 6-2, 6-3
4. Russell Bader (PSU) def. Zeeshan Ismail (YSU), 6-2, 6-4
5. Rodrigo Campos (YSU) def. C.J. Griffin (PSU), 6-2, 6-4
6. Chris Young (PSU) def. Rob Emig (YSU), 6-2, 7-5
Order of finish: 1, 2, 4, 3, 5, 6
Penn State 7, Bloomsburg 0
In the second match of the double dip, the Nittany Lions moved outdoors to the Sarni Tennis Center looking to duplicate their earlier success. Bourchier and Bader wasted no time in the first doubles decision. The duo posted an 8-3 victory over Centre County native Ricky Dove and partner, Mark Schroeder. With the win, Bourchier earned his 78th career doubles victory and moved into a tie for the most doubles victories in a career at Penn State.
Lee and Griffin followed by making quick work of their competition in third doubles, garnering an 8-2 win while clinching the first point of the match. After the point had been awarded, Young and Welnetz completed the doubles sweep, overpowering Jeff Nuhfer and Jack McClurkin in second doubles, 8-1.
With an early lead and the momentum, Penn State turned to singles play looking to sweep the doubleheader. Sophomore Guanhua Chen (DaLian, China) delivered, cruising to a sixth singles sweep of Evan Carney (6-0, 6-0) and giving the Nittany Lions a 2-0 lead. Young posted Penn State's second consecutive blanking, growing the lead to three after defeating Lee Wexler (6-0, 6-0) in third singles.
Hasyn finished off all hopes the Huskies had of making a comeback with a dominant victory in the No. 4 singles bout, routing Nuhfer (6-1, 6-0) and giving the Nittany Lions a 4-0 lead.
After the match had been decided, Bader finished off Max Schroeder (6-2, 6-1) to give the Nittany Lions a 5-0 lead. Bourchier finished a stellar day, dispatching the Huskies No. 1 player, Dove (6-3, 6-2) for his fourth win of the day. Finally, after rallying from 3-2 deficit in the first set, freshman Harry Seaborn (North Salem, N.Y.) topped Jack McClurkin in fifth singles (6-4, 7-5) to finish off Penn State's first clean sweep of the season.
Penn State 7, Bloomsburg 0
Doubles:
1. Eddie Bourchier/Russell Bader (PSU) def. Ricky Dove/Mark Schroeder (Bloom), 8-3
2. Chris Young/Bryan Welnetz (PSU) def. Jeff Nuhfer/Jack McClurkin (Bloom), 8-1
3. Jason Lee/C.J. Griffin (PSU) def. Lee Wexler/Alan Hummel (Bloom), 8-2
Order of finish: 1, 3, 2
Singles:
1. Eddie Bourchier (PSU) def. Ricky Dove (Bloom), 6-3, 6-2
2. Russell Bader (PSU) def. Max Schroeder (Bloom), 6-2, 6-1
3. Chris Young (PSU) def. Lee Wexler (Bloom), 6-0, 6-0
4. Christopher Hasyn (PSU) def. Jeff Nuhfer (Bloom), 6-1, 6-0
5. Harry Seaborn (PSU) def. Jack McClurkin (Bloom), 6-4, 7-5
6. Guanhua Chen (PSU) def. Evan Carney (Bloom), 6-0, 6-0
Order of finish: 6, 3, 4, 2, 1, 5
The Nittany Lions will return to Big Ten Conference play next weekend as they travel to Champaign, Illinois to take on the Illini Friday, March 25 at 4 p.m. and Iowa City, Iowa to face the Hawkeyes Sunday, March 27 at 11 a.m.