Weekly Release #12
4/23/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Thu-Sun., April 25-28 -- at Big Ten Championship (Columbus, Ohio)
April 25 -- First Round vs. #11 seed Indiana, 2 p.m.
April 26 -- Quarterfinal vs. #3 seed Minnesota, 2 p.m.
April 27 -- Semifinals, noon
April 28 -- Championship Match, noon
Sat-Sun., May 11-12 -- at NCAA Regional (Site TBA)
Men's Tennis Heads to Big Ten Championship
The University of Michigan men's tennis team (14-7, 5-5 Big Ten) will travel this week to Columbus, Ohio, for the annual Big Ten Championship hosted by the Ohio State University. The four-day team tournament held at the Stickney Tennis Center gets underway Thursday (April 25) and concludes with the championship match on Sunday (April 28).
Michigan Enters at No. 6 Seed
The Wolverines enter the 2002 championship as the No. 6 seed after finishing the Big Ten dual match season in sixth place with a 5-5 record. U-M faces No. 11 seed Indiana Thursday (April 25, 2 p.m.) and with a victory would get an opportunity to avenge last season's 4-0 loss to Minnesota. The Wolverines and No. 3 seeded Golden Gophers would square off Friday (April 27, noon) in the quarterfinals.
Michigan vs. Indiana
This will be the 64th match between the two programs. Michigan has a 50-12-1 record all-time against Indiana, including wins in nine of the last 11 matches with the Hoosiers. The Wolverines defeated the Hoosiers by a 5-2 score last week (April 20), sweeping all three doubles matches and gaining four singles victories. Michigan has a 0-2 record against Indiana in Big Ten Championship competition, losing 4-3 in the 1997 tournament and 5-4 in the 1990 championship.
Wolverines vs. Golden Gophers
This would be the 71st meeting between the Wolverines and Golden Gophers, with Michigan holding a 47-21-2 advantage in the all-time series. Minnesota has a three-match winning streak against Michigan, including a 7-0 victory earlier this season in Minneapolis (March 8). The Golden Gophers hold a 6-4 advantage in the last 10 meetings, including two wins in Big Ten Championship competition (1995, 2001) and a victory in the 1996 NCAA Regional Championship. Minnesota has won six straight matches against Michigan in Big Ten Championship competition and holds a 7-3 advantage since the tournament was changed to a team format in 1995. The Wolverines' three victories (1985, 1987, 1988) were in the conference title match while the Golden Gophers won twice in championship finals (1993, 1994)
Michigan's Big Ten Championship History
The Wolverines enter the 2002 Big Ten Championship looking to collect their 38th conference title and first since the 1996 tournament. U-M has three times as many Big Ten crowns (37) as any current member of the conference and trails only the Wolverine football program for the most titles by any one team in conference history (football has won or shared 40 Big Ten titles).
Big Ten Conference Men's Tennis Team Titles
| School | Titles |
| Michigan | 37 |
| Chicago* | 13 |
| Illinois | 11 |
| Minnesota | 10 |
| Northwestern | 9 |
| Indiana | 5 |
| Ohio State | 4 |
| Michigan State | 2 |
| Iowa | 1 |
| Butler* | 1 |
* indicates former members of the conference
Mees Guides Wolverines Into Postseason Action
University of Michigan head coach Mark Mees enters his third Big Ten Championship looking to improve upon his 1-2 tournament record. The Wolverines reached the semifinals during Mees' first season (2000), losing an exciting 4-3 match to eventual champion and No. 7 Illinois that included five three-set matches with three going to a third-set tiebreaker (UI won two of those matches) after defeating Purdue in the quarterfinals by a 4-1 score. Last season, Michigan suffered a quarterfinal defeat to Minnesota (4-1). Mees has compiled an impressive 42-24 career record at Michigan, including a 17-13 mark in conference play and a 27-6 home record.
Second-Half Surge: U-M Seeks 15th Victory
Despite losing 5-2 at Purdue to end the regular season, the men's tennis team enters the Big Ten's surging down the stretch. The Wolverines have won six of their last eight matches and eight of their last 11 contests heading into Columbus. U-M needs one victory to reach 15 wins for the second time during head coach Mark Mees' career and to achieve the feat for the third time in the last four seasons. The Wolverines have reached the 15-win plateau 19 times since 1969 and set the school record with 28 victories (28-3) during the 1987 dual match season that saw current assistant coach Dan Goldberg finish as the NCAA Singles runner-up.
Wolverines Ranked 37th
For the second straight week, the Wolverines are ranked No. 37 in the Omni Hotels Collegiate Tennis Rankings administered by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. The Wolverines have gradually moved up the national polls this season and reached a season-high No. 30 ranking after upsetting No. 4 Notre Dame by a 4-3 score on March 27.
Michigan in ITA Rankings
Date Rank Jan. 8 43rd Jan. 30 44th Feb. 13 45th Feb. 20 46th Feb. 27 51st March 6 52nd March 13 46th March 20 40th March 27 46th April 3 30th April 10 37th April 17 37th
Beam Banking on Top Spot
A two-year starter at No. 1 singles and 2001 All-Big Ten Conference selection, senior Henry Beam (Kalamazoo, Mich./Loy Norrix HS) enters the conference tournament after posting his 80th career singles victory. Beam defeated Michigan State's Chris Mitchell in straight sets (6-1, 6-1) on April 3 to reach the milestone victory and has compiled an 81-51 career singles mark. He ranks 12th on Michigan's career singles wins list and has a 48-32 record in dual matches during his career. He has tallied an 18-12 overall singles record this season and needs two victories in the postseason to reach the 20-win plateau for the third time in his career. Beam is 13-8 at the top spot in the lineup this year and 21-18 during his career.
Beam in the Rankings
Date Rank Sept. 13 43rd Dec. 11 60th Feb. 22 57th March 6 NR March 20 54th April 3 39th April 17 61st
Cox Rounding Back Into Form
Senior co-captain Ben Cox (Spring Lake, Mich./Spring Lake HS) looks to complete his career in successful fashion when the Wolverines enter Big Ten Championship action. Cox has compiled a 14-15 overall singles record this season and a 7-11 dual match mark despite mid-season injury and illness. He has 75 career singles victories at Michigan (75-50) and has compiled an impressive 50-28 mark in dual matches.
Lockin Ties Cox for Second in Freshman Victories
Freshman Matt Lockin (Lilburn, Ga./S.D. Independent Study) enters his first conference tournament playing excellent tennis for the Wolverines. He leads the Wolverines in every major statistical category this season, including overall singles wins (26-10), overall winning percentage (.722), dual match victories (17-4), dual match winning percentage (.810), conference wins (7-3) and regional victories (19-6). Lockin has won a season-best seven consecutive matches on two different occasions this year and unfortunately had most recent streak snapped against Purdue's Carl McCafferty in the regular-season finale. Lockin is tied for second place on Michigan's freshman victories list with Ben Cox, and trails only MaliVai Washington, who compiled 37 wins as a freshman during the 1987-88 season (37-11 mark).
Action Jackson
Sophomore Anthony Jackson (Glendale, Wis./Nicolet HS) heads into the Big Ten Championship looking to equal and surpass his career high in singles victories set last season. Jackson joined Matt Lockin in the 20-win club last weekend, defeating Indiana's Tommy Bagnato at No. 4 singles (6-3, 6-1) on April 20. Jackson has compiled a 20-19 overall record this season and is 12-9 in dual match competition. He completed the regular season with a 6-4 mark in conference matches and is 12-14 against regional opponents. For his career, Jackson has compiled a 41-31 career singles record and a 25-16 dual match mark.
Novak Peaking Down the Stretch
Senior Greg Novak (Stoney Creek, Ontario/Cardinal Newman HS) has his game peaking at the right time, having won three straight matches and five of his last six heading into the postseason. Novak has registered a 16-15 overall singles record and an 11-10 dual match mark. After opening the conference slate 0-3, Novak has responded with victories in six of the last seven matches to finish the year with a 6-4 record. He needs one victory to tally his 40th singles win as a Wolverine (39-33) and has a 26-22 doubles record in his two years at U-M.
Doubles Point Key for Wolverines
The winner of the doubles point has proved to have the overall advantage this season. In its seven losses this year, Michigan has surrendered the doubles point in six of the matches. The only exception was when U-M won doubles matches at No. 2 and No. 3 during its first loss of the dual match season, a 4-3 match at Alabama (Feb. 17). The Wolverines hold a record of 35-22 (.614) in 57 doubles matches this season. Leading the way for Michigan is the team of senior Henry Beam and freshman Matt Lockin, who hold a spectacular record of 18-3 at the No. 2 position.
Beam and Lockin Near 20 Wins
The Wolverines dominant doubles pairing of Henry Beam and Matt Lockin looks to become the first doubles tandem in six years to reach 20 wins together. Geoff Prentice and Arvid Swan were the last pairing to reach the 20-win plateau, compiling a 24-9 record during the 1995-96 season. Beam and Lockin have paced Michigan with an 18-3 overall and dual match record and a 7-3 mark against conference opponents. The duo started the season by winning their first 10 dual matches together and had another string of six consecutive victories before suffering a loss. Beam has an 18-3 overall doubles record while Lockin leads the team with a 21-6 overall mark.
Jackson and Novak Solid at No. 3
Anthony Jackson and Greg Novak have been a solid doubles pairing at No. 3 this season, registering a 14-7 dual match record and 14-8 overall mark together. The duo has won six of its final eight dual matches and completed the regular season with a 5-5 Big Ten mark. They have also tallied a 10-5 record against regional opponents.
NCAA Championship Selection Upcoming
Following this week's Big Ten Championship, the men's tennis squad will await selection to the 2002 NCAA Championship field. The Wolverines will be making their third consecutive postseason appearance under Mark Mees and fifth straight NCAA Championship appearance. The 2002 Division I Men's Tennis Championships Selection Show can be seen live on the Internet next Thursday, May 2, at 6:30 p.m. EDT at: http://www.visualwebcaster.com/event.aspid=3814.
Contact: David Ablauf (734) 763-4423
