November 5, 2016 - UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; The Penn State men's tennis team continued Big Ten Championship play today in Madison, Wisc. The Big Ten Indoor Championships are being held in the Nielsen Tennis Stadium at the University of Wisconsin. Play began on Friday, November 4 and is scheduled to conclude on Monday, November 7.
The Lions today showcased sophomore Matt Galush (Cary, N.C.), who continued on in the singles competition. Galush competed in the round of 16 today against Kyle Seelig from Ohio State, and while the match was not won by the blue and white, Galush put up a hard fight.
The men in blue and white hit their stride today in the doubles consolation rounds. Nika Dolidze (Tbilisi, Georgia) and Marc Collado (Barcelona Spain) paired up to defeat both Hallestrand and Kerst from Iowa in a 6-1 draw and Mackenzie and Soyfer from Wisconsin, 6-2. David Kohan (Sydney, Australia) and Henry Gordon (New Braunfels, Tx.) partnered to defeat Ohio State's Seelig and Kobelt team 6-4 and then Wisconsin's O'hoisin and Zordani 7-6 (7-4). These wins by the Dolidze/Collado and Kohan/Gordon teams secured the flight for the Lions.
Todays consolation singles rounds were also fairly successful, with some solid wins for the blue and white. Kohan received a bye in the first round and then went on to defeat Iowa's Tony Leto 7-5, 6-3. Ben Lieb (Newtown Square, Pa.) battled with Tomislav Antoljak from Nebraska and won by forfeit. Zach Lieb (Newtown Square, Pa.) went up against Michigan State's Ivan Rakic and came out on top with a resolute 6-0, 6-1 result. Marc Collado was victorious against another Michigan State player, Doug Francken, 6-1, 6-1. Henry Gordon also was triumphant in his match against yet another Michigan State Spartan, Billy Shisler, in a 6-1, 7-5 outcome.
"We played much more like ourselves today," said head coach Jeff Zinn from Madison. "Matt Galush played outstanding tennis, but unfortunately lost in a close three setter. Henry Gordon, Marc Collado and Zach Lieb also won all their matches today, and we are looking forward to seeing how well they will do tomorrow. Our doubles play was much more like we need it to be in the spring today. All in all we played very well, with two teams making it into the finals tomorrow."
"I am really proud of everyone today," said associate head coach Paul Tobin. "The guys knew we had to step up today and they came through. We took 4-1 doubles and 7-2 singles. They really came out swinging today and that made the difference hitting through these slow courts."
The Lions will continue play tomorrow in Madison, Wisc., at the 2016 Big Ten Indoor Championships. Competition is scheduled to conclude on Monday, November 7. Follow GoPSUsports and our social media pages for tournament updates throughout the weekend!
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