Feb. 18, 2012
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State men's tennis team (7-2) used a strong doubles performance and an overpowering singles attack to defeat Binghamton (2-5) Saturday afternoon at the Penn State Indoor Tennis Center. The Nittany Lions dominated from the beginning en route to their third-straight sweep of an opponent.
Penn State opened the doubles portion of the match with a masterful performance in No. 1 doubles from senior Jason Lee (Sydney, Australia) and sophomore Russell Bader (Austin, Texas). In the tandem's first match since entering the ITA Top-75 doubles rankings at No. 30, Bader and Lee took down Binghamton's Alexandre Haggai and Ismael Dinia with ease (8-4). The Nittany Lions then secured the first point of the afternoon when senior Taylor Cohen (Philadelphia, Pa.) and junior Bryan Welnetz (Laredo, Texas) upended Bastian Bornkessel and Ruben Devos, 8-5, in second doubles. Finally, sophomore Chris Young (Melbourne, Australia) and junior C.J. Griffin (Portland, Mich.) fell in third doubles, 8-4.
With the doubles point in hand, freshman Tomas Hanzlik (Prague, Czech Republic) led off singles play in impressive fashion. The ITA No. 106 singles player jumped out of the gates quickly against Devos, taking the first set, 6-1. Hanzlik fell behind early in the second set, 3-1, but rebounded to earn a 6-4 set victory and take the match.
Cohen battled Bornkessel point for point in an exciting first set on court four. With the set tied at five games apiece, Cohen distanced himself from Bornkessel and never looked back. The co-captain then owned the second set, 6-1, giving Penn State a 3-0 lead in the match. It then came down to Bader to secure Penn State's seventh victory of the season. The Texan worked Robin Lesage in a tough first set, overthrowing Binghamton's third singles player, 7-5. From, there Bader sailed to a 6-1 second set victory, which clinched not only his match, but a victory for Penn State, as well.
Once the match had been decided, Lee took down Alexandre Haggai in straight sets (6-4, 6-2) to improve to 3-3 on the season. Welnetz then earned his seventh victory of the year in fifth singles, with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Dinia. Finally, red-shirt junior Chris Hasyn (Lansdale, Pa.) defeated Ruben Haggai, 6-3, 7-5, to ice the match and secure Penn State's third consecutive sweep.
The Nittany Lions will take the week off before returning to action Saturday, March 3 against the Army Black Knights. The action is set to begin at 10 a.m. Admission to the Indoor Tennis Center is free and pizza will be available for all fans.
Penn State 7, Binghamton 0
Doubles:
1. Jason Lee/Russell Bader (PSU) def. Alexandre Haggai/Ismael Dinia (BING), 8-4.
2. Taylor Cohen/Bryan Welnetz (PSU) def. Bastian Bornkessel/Ruben Devos (BING), 8-5.
3. Ruben Haggai/Robin Lesage (BING) def. Bryan Welnetz/Tomas Hanzlik (PSU), 8-4.
Order of finish: 1, 2, 3
Singles:
Jason Lee (PSU) def. Alexandre Haggai (BING), 6-4, 6-2
Tomas Hanzlik (PSU) def. Ruben Devos (BING), 6-1, 6-4
Russell Bader (PSU) def. Robin Lesage (BING), 7-5, 6-1
Taylor Cohen (PSU) def. Bastian Bornkessel (BING), 7-5, 6-1
Bryan Welnetz (PSU) def. Ismael Dinia (BING), 6-2, 6-3
Chris Hasyn (PSU) vs. Ruben Haggai (BING), 6-3, 7-5
Order of finish: 2, 4, 3, 1, 5, 6