April 22, 2014
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State men's tennis team dropped to No. 24 in the ITA Poll this week, released Tuesday. The Nittany Lions fell two spots despite winning both of their matches last weekend. It marks the fifth consecutive week that Penn State has been ranked in the Top 25.
Penn State finished the regular season with a record of 21-4 overall and 8-3 in the Big Ten. Penn State earned the third seed in this week's Big Ten Tournament, the highest in program history.
The Nittany Lions knocked off No. 63 Nebraska, 7-0, on Friday and followed that up with a 6-1 victory against Iowa on Sunday.
Penn State extended their program record win totals to 21 overall and eight in the Big Ten. Penn State also went undefeated at home this season, going 15-0.
The Nittany Lions also set a new program record for wins over ranked opponents with their 10th of the spring coming on Friday against the Huskers.
Senior Russell Bader (Austin, Texas) and sophomore Leonard Stakhovsky (Kiev, Ukraine) moved up three spots in the ITA Doubles Poll to No. 33. The duo went 2-0 over the weekend while competing at the No. 1 doubles spot.
Bader and Stakhovsky defeated Nebraska's Brandon Videtich and Bradford Zitsch, 8-7(3) on Friday. In their match Sunday against Iowa, they knocked off Brian Alden and Michael Swank, 8-3.
With the win, Bader also moved into second place all-time at Penn State with 79 career doubles wins. The senior is four victories behind his former partner, Eddie Bourchier (2007-11), for first place.
Stakhovsky fell four spots in the ITA Singles Poll this week, dropping to No. 37. Stakhovsky went 1-1 this past weekend with a 6-0, 6-4 win against Nebraska's Dusty Boyer. The sophomore has seven wins this spring against ranked opponents.
The tournament begins Thursday, with Penn State receiving a first round bye and beginning play on Friday in the Big Ten Quarterfinals.
The Nittany Lions will take on the winner of the 6/11 match between No. 43 Michigan and Wisconsin.
Please check back to GoPSUSports.com for more coverage of the Penn State men's tennis team. Fans can also follow the team on our Facebook, Penn State Men's Tennis, and Twitter, @pennstateMTEN, pages.