Michigan
Wisconsin
Michigan Rallies Past Wisconsin for First League Win
4/1/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan freshman men's tennis player Anthony Jackson (Glendale, Wis./Nicolet HS) capped a thrilling Wolverine rally that netted a 4-3 victory over Wisconsin Sunday (April 1) at the Varsity Tennis Center. Jackson defeated Scott Rutherford 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 at the No. 5 singles spot as the Wolverines (7-7, 1-3 Big Ten) won their first Big Ten Conference dual match win of the season by taking four of the six singles matches after losing the doubles point to the Badgers (10-6, 3-2 Big Ten).
Wisconsin gained a 1-0 advantage in the match by sweeping all three doubles contests. The Badgers won an decisive 8-4 contest at No. 2, and gained the team point as Scott Rutherford and Scott Green won a 9-7 match against junior co-captain Henry Beam (Kalamazoo, Mich./Loy Norrix HS) and sophomore Chris Shaya (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Saddlebrook Academy, Fla.) at No. 1. Wisconsin secured the sweep as Danny Westerman and Dustin Taylor won a 7-0 tie-breaker to post a 9-8 match victory over juniors Ben Cox (Spring Lake, Mich./Spring Lake HS) and Greg Novak (Stoney Creek, Ontario/Cardinal Newman HS) at No. 3.
The Wolverines responded with four critical singles victories to take the come-from-behind victory. Juniors Danny McCain (Largo, Fla./Canterbury School) and Novak provided Michigan with a pair of straight-set wins at the No. 3 and No. 4 spots, respectively. After the Badgers tallied a 6-2, 6-2 win by Justin Baker at No. 6, Cox posted a 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 victory over Stefan Reist at No. 2 to gain Michigan's third team point. Jackson clinched the match with his victory at No. 5, while Wisconsin claimed the final match as Westerman scored a tight three-set win over Beam (7-5, 2-6, 6-4) at the top singles spot.
Michigan continues the homestand with a pair of matches next weekend at the Varsity Tennis Center. The Wolverines host Penn State Saturday (April 7, noon) and follow up with a Sunday matchup against Ohio State (April 8, noon).
Following are match-by-match results:
Singles
No. 1 -- Danny Westerman (WI) d. Henry Beam, 7-5, 2-6, 6-4
No. 2 -- Ben Cox (U-M) d. Stefan Reist, 6-4, 2-6, 6-3
No. 3 -- Dan McCain (U-M) d. Dustin Friedman, 6-4, 6-3
No. 4 -- Greg Novak (U-M) d. Dustin Taylor, 6-4, 6-3
No. 5 -- Anthony Jackson (U-M) d. Scott Rutherford, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
No. 6 -- Justin Baker (WI) d. Brett Baudinet, 6-2, 6-2
Doubles
No. 1 -- Rutherford/Scott Green (WI) d. Beam/Chris Shaya, 9-7
No. 2 -- Westerman/Jason Gonzaga (WI) d. McCain/Jackson, 8-4
No. 3 -- Friedman/Taylor (WI) d. Cox/Novak, 9-8 (0)
Contact: David Ablauf (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
