URBANA, Ill. – No. 35 Penn State men's tennis put up a strong fight in singles after winning the doubles point but came out with the 4-3 loss to No. 14 Illinois.
The Nittany Lions now have a 15-7 overall record as well as a 5-3 Big Ten record. The Fighting Illini now own a 14-6 overall record and an 8-0 record in conference.
"What a great college tennis match," head coach Jeff Zinn said. "I couldn't be more proud of my team and how they represented Penn State. When all six singles matches go to three sets, you know you are in an epic tennis match. It was a classic, and we played up to our standards that we have set for each other. It was a heartbreaker to lose, but we will be better for it in the long run."
"So many things you can take away from a match like this," said associate head coach Paul Tobin. "Illinois was not going to lay down and they are coached to step up when it's on the line. Very proud of all these guys. Now, we need to focus on Northwestern and finishing it up at home."
DOUBLES
Penn State won two of three matches to secure the doubles point going into singles competition.
Christian Lakoseljac (King City, Ontario, Canada) and Christos Antonopoulos (Athens, Greece) secured the first win for the Nittany Lions with a victory over Keenan Mayo/Noe Khlif, 6-1. The pair is now 8-5 at the No. 3 doubles spot.
Ben Lieb (Newtown Square, Pa.) and Matt Galush (Cary, N.C.) clinched the match point for the team with a 7-6 (5) win over Vuk Budic/Gui Gomes. The duo now stands with an 11-4 record at the No. 2 spot in the lineup.
SINGLES
Penn State battled hard in singles, with every match going into three sets.
No. 37 Constant De La Bassetiere (Reims, France) defeated the No. 6 singles player in the nation, Aleks Kovacevic, 6-0, 3-6, 6-3. He is now 16-3 at the No. 1 singles position and 6-1 in the Big Ten. He is also 9-1 against ranked opponents. De La Bassetiere is the first singles player in the country to defeat Kovacevic, as he was 14-0 heading into the match.
Antonopoulos got a win of his own, defeating Keenan Mayo, 6-3, 2-6, 6-1. This was his first time playing in the No. 5 spot this season and now has 11 overall wins.
Wins from De La Bassetiere and Antonopoulos put the Blue and White up 3-1, but the Illini came back to win the next two points.
The match came down to Gabriel Nemeth (Brasilia, Brazil) and Zeke Clark on court three. In the three-set battle, both the first and second sets went into tiebreaks, with each one coming out with a win. Clark took the third set, 6-1 and clinched the match win for Illinois.
NEXT UP
The Blue and White will travel to Evanston, Ill. to take on Northwestern Sunday, April 14 at 1 p.m.
Doubles results:
1. Alex Brown/Aleks Kovacevic (Illini) def. #19 Constant De La Bassetiere/Gabriel Nemeth (PSU) 6-1
2. Ben Lieb/Matt Galush (PSU) def. Vuk Budic/Gui Gomes (Illini) 7-6 (5)
3. Christian Lakoseljac/Christos Antonopoulos def. Keenan Mayo/Noe Khlif (Illini) 6-1
Singles Results:
1. #37 Constant De La Bassetiere (PSU) def. #6 Aleks Kovacevic (Illini) 6-0, 3-6, 6-3
2. #48 Alex Brown (Illini) def. #105 Christian Lakoseljac (PSU) 7-6 (9), 3-6, 6-4
3. Zeke Clark (Illini) def. Gabriel Nemeth (PSU) 7-6 (5), 6-7 (5), 6-1
4. Shiphosothando Montsi (Illini) def. Ben Lieb (PSU) 2-6, 6-1, 6-2
5. Christos Antonopoulos (PSU) def. Keenan Mayo (Illini) 6-3, 2-6, 6-1
6. Vuk Budic (Illini) def. Alp Sentay (PSU) 6-4, 6-7 (6), 6-3
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