University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Scare 12th-Ranked Illini in 4-3 Loss
4/5/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Minnesota suffered its first home loss of the season, but took Big Ten undefeated and 12th-ranked Illinois to the wire in a 4-3 loss on Sunday at the Baseline Tennis Center.
The Gophers’ biggest victory came from sophomore Tobias Wernet, who knocked off the nation’s 39th-ranked player, Dennis Nevolo, 6-3, 7-5 in a No. 2 singles match. Wernet battled back from a 4-1 deficit in the second set to pull out the victory. Minnesota also had a key victory at No. 1 doubles as Sebastian Gallego and Ishay Hadash took down the nation’s 49th-ranked tandem of Marek Czerwinski and Marc Spicijaric 8-2.
Illinois, however, claimed the other two doubles matches for the decisive first point. The Illini got wins from 18th-ranked Ruan Roelofse and Nevolo at No. 2 and Waylon Chin and Brian Livingston at No. 3. The Gophers’ No. 2 team of Wernet and Julian Dehn lost 8-5, while Michael Sicora and Phillip Arndt lost 8-6 at No. 3.
Minnesota evened the match when Dino Bilankov won his No. 5 singles match 6-4, 6-3 over Roelofse. Illinois came back to win the next two singles contests as Czerwinski downed Hadash 6-4, 6-1 at No. 1 and 42nd-ranked Roy Kalmanovich held off Gallego 6-4, 6-4 at No. 3.
Wernet’s victory pulled the Gophers within 3-2 and Minnesota’s two freshmen in the lineup both rallied to force third sets. However, Illinois’ Chin outlasted Arndt 6-4, 1-6, 6-1 at No. 4 to clinch the match before Dehn rallied past Abe Souza 5-7, 6-4, 7-5.
Minnesota, ranked 33rd in the country, fell to 12-1 at home for the season as the Gophers are now 15-5 overall and 4-2 in the Big Ten. Illinois is 16-5 overall and 6-0 in the conference. The Gophers play next weekend at Northwestern on Saturday and at Wisconsin the following day.
#12 Illinois 4, #33 Minnesota 3
Doubles
1. Ishay Hadash/Sebastian Gallego (MINN) def. #49 Marek Czerwinski/Marc Spicijaric (ILL) 8-2
2. #18 Dennis Nevolo/Ruan Roelofse (ILL) def. Julian Dehn/Tobias Wernet (MINN) 8-5
3. Waylon Chin/Brian Livingston (ILL) def. Phillip Arndt/Michael Sicora (MINN) 8-6
Singles
1. #79 Marc Spicijaric (ILL) def. #60 Ishay Hadash (MINN) 6-4, 6-1
2. Tobias Wernet (MINN) def. #39 Dennis Nevolo (ILL) 6-3, 7-5
3. #42 Roy Kalmanovich (ILL) def. Sebastian Gallego (MINN) 6-4, 6-4
4. Waylon Chin (ILL) def. Phillip Arndt (MINN) 6-4, 1-6, 6-4
5. Dino Bilankov (MINN) def. Ruan Roelofse (ILL) 6-4, 6-3
6. Julian Dehn (MINN) def. Abe Souza (ILL) 5-7, 6-4, 7-5
Match Notes:
Illinois 16-5, 6-0 Big Ten; National ranking #12
Minnesota 15-5, 4-2 Big Ten; National ranking #33
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (5,1,3,2,4,6)
Players Mentioned
