University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Fall to Michigan in ITA Consolation
2/1/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
It won't count in the Big Ten standings, but conference rival Michigan got the best of Minnesota in a 4-2 victory on Sunday in a consolation match of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Indoor National tournament in Lexington, Ky.
The Wolverines and Gophers both lost their opening matches on Saturday and were forced to meet in the consolation round. They will face each other again in a Big Ten match in Ann Arbor on March 27. Michigan, ranked 41st nationally, is now 2-2 overall, while 31st-ranked Minnesota is 1-2.
The deciding match was the tightest of the day as the Gophers' Tobias Wernet dropped a heartbreaker to Michigan's Jason Jung at No. 1 singles. Jung, ranked 50th nationally, took a pair of tiebreakers from the 55th-ranked Wernet to win 4-6, 7-6, 7-6. He won the second set tiebreaker 14-12 and took the decisive third set tiebreaker 7-2.
Michigan claimed the doubles point as Chris Cha and Chris Madden blanked Julian Dehn and Brendan Ruddock 8-0 at No. 3 and George Navas and Mike Sroczynski defeated Tobias Wernet and Rok Bonin 8-3 at No. 2.
Dino Bilankov evened the match for the Gophers with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Madden at No. 4 singles, but the Wolverines bounced back with a three-set comeback win by Evan King over Rok Bonin at No. 2. King, ranked 75th nationally, bounced back to beat Bonin 1-6, 6-3, 6-2. Minnesota again tied the match with a win from 67th-ranked Sebastian Gallego over Sroczynski 6-7, 6-3, 6-4 at No. 3.
Navas downed the Gophers' Phillip Arndt 7-5, 6-3 at No. 5 as Michigan took a 3-2 lead before Jung pulled out the clinching victory. Michigan's Cha took the first set from Dehn when the match was suspended.
Minnesota will play its home opener on Friday when the Gophers host Louisville at 5 p.m.
#41 Michigan 4, #31 Minnesota 2
Singles
1. #50 Jason Jung (MICH) def. #55 Tobias Wernet (MINN) 4-6, 7-6 (14-12), 7-6 (7-2)
2. #75 Evan King (MICH) def. Rok Bonin (MINN) 1-6, 6-3, 6-2
3. #67 Sebastian Gallego (MINN) def. Mike Sroczynski (MICH) 6-7 (4-7), 6-3, 6-4
4. Dino Bilankov (MINN) def. Chris Madden (MICH) 6-2, 6-4
5. George Navas (MICH) def. Phillip Arndt (MINN) 7-5, 6-3
6. Julian Dehn (MINN) vs. Chris Cha (MICH) 6-7 (3-7), 2-2, unfinished
Doubles
1. Phillip Arndt/Sebastian Gallego (MINN) vs. Evan King/Jason Jung (MICH) 5-6, unfinished
2. George Navas/Mike Sroczynski (MICH) def. Tobias Wernet/Rok Bonin (MINN) 8-3
3. Chris Cha/Chris Madden (MICH) def. Julian Dehn/Brendan Ruddock (MINN) 8-0
Match Notes:
Michigan 2-2; National ranking #41
Minnesota 1-2; National ranking #31
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (4,2,3,5,1)
Players Mentioned
