Weekly Release #11
4/1/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Upcoming Schedule
Wednesday, April 2 -- at Michigan State (East Lansing, Mich.), 6 p.m.
Saturday, April 5 -- vs. Indiana (Varsity Tennis Center), Noon
Tuesday, April 8 -- vs. Indiana State (Varsity Tennis Center), 3 p.m.
Saturday, April 12 -- at Purdue (West Lafayette, Ind.), Noon EST/CDT
Sunday, April 13 -- at Illinois (Champaign, Ill.), Noon CDT
U-M Looks to Get Back On Track
The University of Michigan men's tennis team (5-9, 0-4 Big Ten) looks to snap a five-match losing skid when it takes on Michigan State and Indiana this week. Michigan will travel to East Lansing, Mich., on Wednesday (April 2, 6 p.m.) for a match with the Spartans and close the week by hosting the Hoosiers on Saturday (April 5, noon) at the Varsity Tennis Center. The Wolverines will then welcome Indiana State to the Varsity Tennis Center next Tuesday for a 3 p.m. match. The match with ISU was originally scheduled for Feb. 16 but was postponed due to inclement weather conditions.
Scouting the Opponents
Michigan State -- The No. 74-ranked Spartans enter the match with 10-9 record in dual match play, including a 1-3 mark in the conference. MSU returns eight letterwinners from last year's squad, a team that finished with a 14-12 record. This year's team is led by senior co-captains Adam Hourani and Jimmy McGuire. Hourani has collected a 14-8 overall singles record this season, including a 7-2 dual match mark. McGuire has posted a singles record of 15-13 this year, with a 9-5 dual match record. Gene Orlando is in his 12th season as the head coach at MSU and entered the year with a career record of 124-158 at the school. In their last meeting, the Wolverines came out on top, defeating Michigan State 5-2 last season at the Varsity Tennis Center. U-M leads the all-time series 84-17.
Michigan State on the Internet: www.msuspartans.com
Indiana -- The No. 23-ranked Hoosiers arrive in Ann Arbor with a 11-3 dual match record and a perfect 3-0 mark in the conference. Indiana concluded last season with a 7-16 overall record and a 1-10 mark in the Big Ten. Sophomore Jakub Praibis leads the Hoosiers with a team-best 12-6 singles record, including a 10-4 mark in dual match play, primarily at No. 1. Praibis has also teamed with John Stone for a team-best 8-3 doubles record at No. 3. Michigan posted two wins against Indiana last season, the most recent coming in the first round of the Big Ten Championship, where the Wolverines earned a 4-2 victory to improve their all-time series advantage to 51-12.
Indiana on the Internet: www.iuhoosiers.com
Indiana State -- The No. 63-ranked Sycamores begin the week with a 7-8 dual match record. ISU captured its fourth consecutive Missouri Valley Conference title last season after finishing with a 23-10 record and earning a trip to the second round of the NCAA Championship. This year's squad is led by senior Vedron Vidovic, who is ranked No. 83 nationally and has compiled a 10-10 overall record at No. 1. Indiana State has only met Michigan twice, earning victories in both matches, the most recent coming last season when the Sycamores swept U-M 7-0 in Terre Haute, Ind.
Indiana State on the Internet: www.indstate.edu/athletic
Wolverines Drop Pair of Big Ten Road Matches
U-M is still searching for its first Big Ten victory after falling to Minnesota and Iowa on the road last weekend. The Wolverines managed just one doubles victory in their 7-0 loss to the No. 13-ranked Golden Gophers on Friday (March 28). Michigan earned the doubles point against Iowa but surrendered four matches in singles play en route to a 4-3 loss to the Hawkeyes on Sunday (March 30). The loss to Minnesota drops U-M's all-time series advantage to 47-24, while Iowa's victory cuts Michigan's all-time series lead to 39-6.
Men's Netters Move Up Three Spots in National Rankings
The Wolverines enter the week ranked No. 61 in the most recent ITA National Rankings released on Wednesday, March 26. U-M entered dual match play with a season-high No. 48 ranking (Jan. 13) and has dropped as low as No. 64 (March 19).
Rubin Earns 10th Dual Match Singles Win
Sophomore Michael Rubin (Canton, Ohio/Canton Central Catholic HS) reached his 10th singles win of the dual match season with a 7-6(3), 6-4 win over Iowa's Stuart Waters (March 30). Rubin has a team-best 21-8 overall record in singles and has a 10-4 dual match mark (9-4 at No. 1, 0-1 at No. 2). Rubin is 2-2 against Big Ten opponents and is 16-5 in the Midwest Region.
Mees Mixes Up Doubles Pairings
In an effort to strengthen the doubles lineup, head coach Mark Mees made changes at No. 2 and No. 3 against Minnesota and Iowa. Mees placed senior Chris Shaya (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Saddlebrook Academy, Fla.) and junior Anthony Jackson (Glendale, Wis./Nicolet HS) together at No. 2, while Vinny Gossain (Okemos, Mich./Okemos HS) moved to No. 3 with fellow sophomore David Anving (Tvaaker, Sweden/Varbergs Gymnasieskola). Shaya and Jackson split their pair of matches, while Gossain and Anving went 2-0.
Next Weekend
U-M will hit the road to face Purdue on Saturday (April 12, noon EST/CDT) in West Lafayette, Ind., and Illinois on Sunday (April 13, noon CDT) in Champaign, Ill.
Contact: Marc Ressler, Dave Ablauf (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
