UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State men's tennis will open up its spring season on the road at Virginia Tech in a hidden dual match Jan. 19-21 at the Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center.
Players traveling for the Nittany Lions include senior Constant De La Bassetiere (Reims, France), junior Christian Lakoseljac (King City, Ontario, Canada), junior Christos Antonopoulos (Athens, Greece), junior Gabriel Nemeth (Brasilia, Brazil), sophomore Alp Sentay (Izmar, Turkey), senior Matt Galush (Cary, N.C.), senior Ben Lieb (Newtown Square, Pa.), senior Zach Lieb (Newtown Square, Pa.) and freshman Jordan Nickerson (Boca Raton, Fla.).
The doubles pairings will include De La Bassetiere/Nemeth, B. Lieb/Galush and Antonopoulos/Lakoseljac. All doubles pairs are subject to change throughout the tournament.
HIDDEN DUEL MATCH FORMAT
Over the three day span, Penn State will face off against three teams. Saturday they will play Virginia Tech (2-0), followed by William & Mary (0-1) on Sunday and end with Middle Tennessee (2-0) on Monday.
Each player will compete and accumulate points as an individual with no team score. In singles, a win at the No. 1 spot will earn an individual eight points with point totals going down the lineup with No. 8 winning just one point. In doubles, a win at No. 1 is worth six points, a win at No. 2 is worth four points, a win at No. 3 is worth two points and a win at the No. 4 spot is worth one point.
"I really like the format this weekend and the competition that is coming to the tournament," head coach Jeff Zinn said. "We will get to see the guys in a 'team setting' with national rankings on the line in most of the matches. It's a great tune-up before we start dual matches."
SCOUTING THE HOKIES
Virginia Tech started its spring season on Thursday, Jan. 17, with a doubleheader defeating Boston University, 7-0, and Charleston, 6-1. The talented Hokies' roster features three ranked singles players in No. 26 Mitch Harper, No. 30 Jason Kros and No. 118 Henrik Korsgaard along with two ranked doubles pairings in No. 42 Donato/Harper and No. 43 Korsgaard/Ribeiro.
The Nittany Lions have a 7-12 all-time record against the Hokies, with the most recent meeting coming last spring. Despite winning the doubles point, the Blue and White fell to Virginia Tech 4-1.
INSIDE THE TRIBE
William & Mary started off its season with a loss to No. 17 Virginia, 6-1, on Thursday, Jan. 17.
Penn State has an 8-5 all-time record against the Tribe. The two team's most recent meeting was in the spring of 2016 when the Nittany Lions came out on top, 5-2.
The teams will see each other again later in the spring season, when William & Mary travel to Happy Valley on Friday, Feb. 15.
LOOKING INTO THE BLUE RAIDERS
Middle Tennessee started off its spring season Wednesday, Jan. 16, with a doubleheader against Austin Peay and Chattanooga. The Blue Raiders swept both teams, starting off 2-0 for the third straight season
The Blue Raiders' squad features a lone ranked player in No. 119 Gonzalo Morell Raschiatore.
This will mark the first meeting between the two teams.
NITTANY LION FALL HIGHLIGHTS
Penn State men's tennis ended its 2018 fall season on a historic note, earning the Oracle ITA National Fall Consolation title. The duo of Constant De La Bassetiere and Gabriel Nemeth took home the accolade for the first time in program history.
The pair also captured the ITA Atlantic Regional Title earlier in the season to punch their ticket to Nationals.
Heading into the spring, De La Bassetiere and Nemeth earned the No. 1 ranking from the ITA.
UP NEXT
Penn State will travel to the LSU Invite Jan. 25-27 hosted in the LSU Tennis Complex.
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 Penn State Men's Tennis and follow our twitter @pennstateMTEN.