UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Penn State men's tennis team (3-4, 3-4 B1G) heads on the road again for a pair of matches at Wisconsin (2-6, 2-5 B1G) on Friday, March 19 and No. 45 Minnesota (4-3, 4-3 B1G) on Sunday, March 21.
"We are looking forward to the possibility of playing some matches outdoors this weekend," head coach Jeff Zinn said. "We haven't played an outdoor match this year, so it will be good to test the waters and see how we do in different conditions. Both Wisconsin and Minnesota are coming off successful weekends so we will have our hands full with tough competition."
FOLLOW ALONG
Wisconsin: Live stats
Minnesota: Live stats
LAST TIME OUT
The Nittany Lions split their two road matches last weekend, falling to then-No. 13 Michigan and rebounding with a win at Michigan State.
At Michigan, the Wolverines earned the doubles point and won on five of the six singles courts to walk away with a 6-1 win. At No. 6, Tim Ruetzel picked up the first singles point for Penn State, winning in the third set against Wolverines' Jacob Bickersteth.
In a quick turnaround, the Nittany Lions defeated Michigan State 5-2, and scored its sixth consecutive triumph over the Spartans. Penn State was unable to take the doubles point, but made up for it in singles, recording wins on five courts.
INSIDE THE BADGERS
Wisconsin has dropped four of its previous five matches, all to ranked conference opponents. The Badgers enter Friday's competition coming off a 5-2 win at Nebraska.
The last time the two programs met in 2019, the Nittany Lions won 6-1 at home. Penn State looks to continue its recent success, winning five of its last seven contests against the Badgers.
SCOUTING MINNESOTA
Minnesota is the middle of a three-match win streak, highlighted by a 4-3 upset at then-No. 38 Iowa in Iowa City last weekend. The Gophers' record features two ranked wins over Northwestern and Iowa, while their three losses have come from Michigan State, Michigan and Illinois. Minnesota hosts the 12th-ranked Buckeyes on Friday, March 19.
Last weekend, the Gophers' duo of Vlad Lobak and Siim Troost knocked off the No. 17 pairing of Iowa's Will Davies and Oliver Okonkwo, 7-6. Lobak and Troost earned their second win of the season against ranked doubles partners.
The matchup at Minnesota marks Penn State's fifth ranked opponent of the season. The two programs have split the last six, with Penn State securing the most recent 5-2 win in University Park in 2019.
UP NEXT
The Nittany Lions return home to host Iowa on Friday, March 26 and Nebraska on Sunday, March 28.
Check GoPSUSports.com for coverage of the Penn State men's tennis team during the season. Follow the team on Twitter @pennstateMTEN, Instagram @pennstatemtennis and on Facebook at facebook.com/pennstatemenstennis.