Feb. 21, 2016
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The No. 44 Nittany Lions (9-0) continued to win Sunday, defeating NJIT (2-2) 7-0. The Lions advance undefeated into Big Ten play next weekend. Earlier in the day, the Lions took down William and Mary, 5-2.
"This weekend was exactly what we needed before we begin out Big Ten season next Friday night," said head coach Jeff Zinn. "Our players are beginning to understand what it takes to be a successful team."
Penn State started the second match of the day strong, clinching the doubles point. Leonard Stakhovsky (Kiev, Ukraine) and Matt Barry (Lido Beach, N.Y.) took a commanding lead and never let up. The duo took second doubles at 6-0. Roman Trkulja (Toronto, Canada) and Matt Galush (Cary, N.C.) defeated the Highlanders' Zvikas and Kaic 6-3.
"I think the guys were tired," said assistant coach Paul Tobin. "After two tough match against Cornell and William and Mary, we really had to grind it out to beat these guys."
Freshman Ben Lieb (Newtown Square, Pa.) got the single momentum going with an easy win at fourth singles. Lieb took down Highlander Arnaud Holl 6-2, 6-2. Barry followed it up at second singles taking down NJIT 6-3, 6-4. Tomas Hanzlik (Prague, Czech Republic) brought Penn State the win in a dramatic second-set tiebreak finish. Senior Hanzlik won the tiebreak 7-4 to seal the win over the Highlanders.
Freshman Constant De La Bassetiere (Reims, France) fought in a third-set tiebreak to bring home his first win at first singles. De La Bassetiere had to fight to the end of the close match against NJIT's Markus Schultz. Kohan and Galush finished their fifth and sixth matches next to bring Penn State to a 7-0 victory. Both won in two quick sets.
Penn State will now enter Big Ten play undefeated, similar to the 2014 season. Jeff Zinn's Nittany Lions will also prepare for a long road trip. The team will not be home for four weeks, including their trip down to Florida.
"We had to fight hard when we were tired against three quality teams this entire weekend," said Coach Zinn. "We appreciate the fans coming out to the matches this weekend. The crowd today helped us push through the tiredness and continue to win."
The Nittany Lions are back in action Feb. 26 when they travel to Ohio State to open Big Ten play.
Please check back to GoPSUSports.com for more coverage of the Penn State men's tennis team. Updates are also available on our Facebook, Penn State Men's Tennis, and Twitter, @pennstateMTEN, pages.
7 Penn State, 0 NJIT
Doubles:
1. David Kohan/Christian Lutschaunig (PSU) vs. Schultz/Holl (NJIT), 5-2, unfinished.
2. Leo Stakhovsky/Matt Barry (PSU) def. Alban/Cimrman (NJIT), 6-0.
3. Roman Trkulja/Matt Galush (PSU) def. Zvikas/Kaic (NJIT), 6-3.
Order of Finish: 2, 3
Singles:
1. Constant De La Bassetiere (PSU) def. Markus Schultz (NJIT), 7-5, 6-7(5-7), 1-0(10-4).
2. Matt Barry (PSU) def. Jan Cimrman (NJIT), 6-3, 6-4.
3. Tomas Hanzlik (PSU) def. Andres Alban (NJIT), 6-2, 7-6(7-4).
4. Ben Lieb (PSU) def. Arnaud Holl (NJIT), 6-2, 6-2.
5. David Kohan (PSU) def. Lukas Zvikas (NJIT), 7-6 (8-6), 6-1.
6. Matt Galush (PSU) def. Zac Castagna (NJIT), 6-2, 6-1.
Order of Finish: 4, 2, 3, 1, 5, 6