March 26, 2017 - UNIVERISTY PARK, Pa.; Penn State men's tennis concluded their double-header today against NJIT at the Indoor Tennis Center. The Lions battled hard against the Highlanders and came out on top with a 6-1 match score.
The Lions eased past the Highlanders to secure the doubles point this evening. David Kohan (Sydney, Australia) paired with Christos Antonopoulos (Athens, Greece) on court two to defeat Lukas Zvikas and Zac Castagna 6-0. Christian Lutschaunig (Richboro, Pa.) teamed up with Zach Lieb (Newtown Square, Pa.) on court one to take down Aleksa Petrovic and Jot Sandhu 6-4. Gabriel Nemeth (Brasilia, Brazil) and Matt Galush (Cary, N.C.) partnered on court three and were in a match tied at 5-5 that went unfinished.
Singles boded well for the blue and white this evening. Christian Lakoseljac (King City, Ontario, Canada) defeated Aleksa Petrovic on court one 6-2, 6-1. Christos Antonopoulos took down Lukas Zvikas 6-0, 6-4. Zach Lieb was victorious over Richard Rangga 6-3, 6-4 to clinch the match. Aws Laaribi (Rye, N.Y.) faced Pablo Arruita and was triumphant in a 6-1, 6-4 match. David Kohan defeated George Svensson 6-4, 7-5.
"Unfortunately I am sounding like a broken record this weekend," said head coach Jeff Zinn. "All we can do is put ourselves in good positions to win points, but sometimes things don't go your way. To have four match points in a row and then not win them is very rare in a tennis match. Unfortunately that happened today and it cost us the match against UPenn. We are competing hard and that is all that a coach can ask for, we are so close but for some reason we aren't closing the matches out. We still have the bulk of the Big Ten ahead of us and we need to put everything into these last eight matches. They will determine our future and how far we play into May this year."
"Earlier today against Penn was another tough match that could have gone in either direction," said associate head coach Paul Tobin. "These tight 4-3 matches are hard to swallow, but it does show that we are just a hair away from being one of the top ranked teams. There is still more tennis ahead and I feel good that things will come together. Our guys are working hard."
Penn State will now travel to Lincoln, Neb. to face the Nebraska Cornhuskers on Friday, March 31 followed by a match against the Iowa Hawkeyes on Sunday, April 2.
Keep up with the Penn State men's tennis team at GoPSUsports.com. For continued updates throughout the year, make sure to `like' our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatemten and follow our twitter @pennstateMTEN!
Doubles Results:
1. Lutschaunig/Z.Lieb (PSU) def. Petrovic/Sandhu (NJIT), 6-4
2. Kohan/Antonopoulos (PSU) def. Zvikas/Castagna (NJIT), 6-0
3. Nemeth/Galush (PSU) vs. Rangga/Arrutia (NJIT), 5-5, unfinished
Order of Finish: 2, 1
Singles Results:
1. Christian Lakoseljac (PSU) def. Aleksa Petrovic (NJIT), 6-2, 6-1
2. Christos Antonopoulos (PSU) def. Lukas Zvikas (NJIT), 6-0, 6-4
3. Zac Castagna (NJIT) def. Gabriel Nemeth (PSU), 7-5, 6-4
4. Zach Lieb (PSU) def. Richard Rangga (NJIT), 6-3, 6-4
5. Aws Laaribi (PSU) def. Pablo Arrutia (NJT), 6-1, 6-4
6. David Kohan (PSU) def. George Svensson (NJIT), 6-4, 7-5
Order of Finish: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6