University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
Michigan
Gophers Oust Michigan With 4-0 Victory
4/24/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
URBANA, Ill. -- The 23rd-ranked Minnesota men's tennis team defeated Michigan in the quarterfinal round of the Big Ten Tournament Friday in Urbana, Ill. The third-seeded Gophers eliminated the 11th-seeded Wolverines with a 4-0 victory and are now 20-6 on the year.
Minnesota's win was its third of the season over the Maize and Blue and was its seventh win in the teams' last eight meetings. The Gophers have now hit the 20-win mark for the first time since 2003.
Leandro Toledo and Felix Corwin got the match started with an 8-3 win at No. 2 doubles. Michigan negated that victory with a doubles win of its own at No. 1, but Eric Frueh and Matic Spec gave the Gophers a 1-0 lead with a triumph at No. 3. Minnesota has now won the doubles competition in 22 of its 26 matches on the year.
Toledo carried his team's momentum into singles by dispatching Michael Zhu at the top position, 6-2, 6-3. It was Toledo's 18th victory at No. 1 this season--matching the most for a Gopher since 1995. Toledo now has 96-career singles wins, tying him for the 10th-most in program history.
At No. 2, Spec made it 3-0 with a straight-set defeat of Runhao Hua. The Maribor, Slovenia native has now won 13-consecutive singles matches.
Ruben Weber sent the Gophers to the semifinal round with a 6-4, 7-6 (1) win at the fourth position. Corwin, Jack Hamburg and Mathieu Froment saw their matches go unfinished at Nos. 3, 5 and 6, respectively. All three matches were in the third set.
Minnesota will take on fellow Big Ten regular-season co-champion Ohio State in the next round at noon CT Saturday. The Gophers fell, 4-2, to the Buckeyes on the road in the teams' first meeting of the season.
No. 23 Minnesota 4, Michigan 0
Urbana, Ill. (Kahn Outdoor Tennis Complex)
Singles competition
1. No. 25 Leandro Toledo (MINN) def. Michael Zhu (MICH) 6-2, 6-3
2. No. 57 Matic Spec (MINN) def. Runhao Hua (MICH) 6-3, 6-1
3. Felix Corwin (MINN) vs. Alex Petrone (MICH) 6-4, 3-6, 2-3, unfinished
4. Ruben Weber (MINN) def. Alex Knight (MICH) 6-4, 7-6 (1)
5. Jack Hamburg (MINN) vs. Kevin Wong (MICH) 6-3, 6-7 (2), 1-1, unfinished
6. Mathieu Froment (MINN) vs. Carter Lin (MICH) 3-6, 6-2, 3-2, unfinished
Doubles competition
1. Runhao Hua/Alex Knight (MICH) def. No. 56 Mathiew Froment/Jack Hamburg (MINN) 8-3
2. Leandro Toledo/Felix Corwin (MINN) def. Alex Petrone/Kevin Wong (MICH) 8-3
3. Eric Frueh/Matic Spec (MINN) def. Tyler Gardiner/Michael Zhu (MICH) 8-5
Match Notes
Michigan 7-17
Minnesota 20-6
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (1,2,4)
Players Mentioned
