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Gophers to Bring Season to a Close against Huskers, Hawkeyes
4/15/2021 1:48:00 PM | Men's Tennis
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - The University of Minnesota men's tennis team is set to host the B1G regular season finale this weekend with a pair of matches against the Nebraska Cornhuskers and the Iowa Hawkeyes.
The Gophers, who are ranked 49th in the ITA Coaches Poll, will take on Nebraska on Friday, April 16, before hosting Iowa on Sunday, April 18 for their final home meet.
The three seniors, Jackson Allen, Kaleb Dobbs, and Vlad Lobak, as well as coaches Geoff Young and Urban Ljubic will be recognized before Sunday's contest.
Setting the Stage:
The Gophers got back on the right track last weekend, snapping a two-game skid with a 4-3 road victory against Wisconsin last Sunday. In a tight, back-and-forth battle, the Maroon and Gold were able to prevail thanks to their ability to gain the edge in close sets, including a third-set tiebreaker victory from Vlad Lobak, which helped secure the win.
Now, The "U" returns home to Baseline Tennis Center where they have found quite a bit of success this season, going 5-2 at home on the year, with the only two losses coming against top-15 opponents in Illinois and Ohio State.
Tale of the Tape - The Cornhuskers
Nebraska (1-13) comes into this weekend on the heels of a two-game skid after suffering losses against Illinois and Northwestern last weekend, however they did win their first match of the season a week prior in a home tilt against the Iowa Hawkeyes.
The Gophers and the Cornhuskers did clash earlier in the season, with Minnesota coming out on top with a 5-2 road victory in Lincoln. Minnesota also holds the all-time series record of 9-2 in a relatively small sample size since Nebraska joined the B1G.
Tale of the Tape - The Hawkeyes
This weekend's rivalry matchup against the Hawkeyes will have a much different feel to it this time around, as the Gophers road victory against then-ranked Iowa earlier in the season kicked off what would be an eight-game skid for the Hawkeyes.
Iowa does still house a talented lineup, being led by the No. 2 doubles pairing of Will Davies and Oliver Okonkwo, however the pair does have a loss on the season against the Maroon & Gold, dropping a 7-6 match against the Gophers' premier pairing of No. 15 Vlad Lobak and Siim Troost.
Minnesota holds the all-time series lead with a 60-37-3 against the Hawkeyes.
How to Follow Along:
Follow along on Twitter at @GopherMTennis for live updates throughout the weekend, and look for a recap following this weekend's action on GopherSports.com.