Spartans Prepare For Final Conference Matches
4/19/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
April 19, 2007
EAST LANSING, Mich. -
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The 74th-ranked MSU men's tennis team hits the road for the final two Big Ten matches of the season this weekend. On Saturday, the Spartans will take on 38th-ranked Wisconsin in Madison, Wis., and then travel to 61st-ranked Northwestern in Evanston, Ill., on Sunday. Both matches are scheduled for noon.
Spartan Rewind
Last weekend, the Green and White shocked visiting 37th-ranked Penn State, 4-3, for the Spartans' second consecutive Big Ten match win, in their last home match of the season.
State won the doubles point for the second consecutive match to put the first point on the board. Following the doubles point win, Michigan State dropped the next three matches, placing Penn State up 3-1. On court No. 1, then 59th-ranked Nick Rinks dropped his first set in a tiebreaker, 6-7 (3). The No. 1 man, continued to win the next two sets, 6-2, 6-4, for the comeback victory and his sixth Big Ten win of the season.
Only down 3-2, Alex Forger won the first set, 6-4, on the No. 2 court. State dropped the next set, 3-6, but came back for the crucial third-set win, 6-3. With the win Forger has strung together two consecutive Big Ten wins and is 16-11 in the spring season and 3-5 in Big Ten play.
Tied at 3-all, the win came down to the fourth court of John Allare. Like his teammate Rinks, the sophomore dropped his first set, 3-6. With the win on the line and his team looking on, Allare rallied back to win two consecutive two sets, 7-6 (6-3), 6-3.
The Wisconsin Badgers
The 38th-ranked Wisconsin Badgers come off two road wins, defeating both Iowa, 7-0, and Minnesota, 5-2. Wisconsin is currently on a two-match Big Ten winning streak like State and sits in fifth place in the conference standings.
In doubles, the Badgers are led by Moritz Baumann and Nolan Polley at the No. 1 spot. The duo is 8-6 in dual season play and is 2-2 in Big Ten play. Baumann has also teamed up with Lachezar Kasarov at No. 1 and they have put together a 2-3 record in Big Ten. In singles Baumann is the only player ranked nationally at No. 116. The freshman is 7-2 in Big Ten play and 14-5 during the dual season.
In the last meeting, Wisconsin defeated MSU, 7-0, for a 34-31 advantage in the series.
The Northwestern Wildcats
Northwestern split its weekend road contests at Minnesota and Iowa, falling 6-1 to the Gophers on Friday before downing Iowa, 5-2, on Sunday. Willy Lock captured a straight-set win at No. 2 singles, but the Wildcats fell to the 36th-ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers, 6-1.
The best doubles record comes from the No. 3 team of Juan Gomez and Christian Tempke. The team is 10-8 on the third court and 5-4 in Big Ten play. Tempke is also ranked in singles play. The 109th-ranked senior is 4-3 at No. 1 singles and 5-9 at No. 2 singles.
Last year against Northwestern, the Green and White dropped the match, 7-0, at Northwestern. The Wildcats hold the advantage in the series, 41-23.
Moving On Up
The Spartans popped back into this week's recent ITA rankings at the No. 74 spot, after defeating No. 41 Penn State. This is not the Green and White's first time joining the nation's elite. In the Feb. 6, 2007 poll, State sat at No. 74.
Looking Ahead
The Spartans conclude their regular season this weekend before heading to the Big Ten Championships, held in West Lafayette, Ind., on April 26-29.
