Michigan
Indiana
Wolverines Earn Important Conference Win Over Indiana
4/23/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 64 University of Michigan men's tennis team claimed sole possession of third place in the Big Ten Conference standings by upsetting No. 57 Indiana 5-2 Saturday afternoon (April 23) at the Varsity Tennis Center. The Wolverines (13-9), who headed into the match tied with the Hoosiers (11-11, 5-4) in the Big Ten, were able to pull out a sweep in doubles play before straight-set victories in four of six singles matches to improve to 6-3 in the conference.
Michigan's No. 2 doubles team of senior Josef Fischer (Nuernberg, Germany/Bradenton Academy) and sophomore Ryan Heller (Northbrook, Ill./Glenbrook North HS) gave the Wolverines the early energy, handily defeating Ryan Recht and John Stone 8-3. The U-M pair improves to 8-7 in dual match action.
The two remaining doubles matches went wire to wire, only to see the Maize and Blue come away victorious by a 9-8(5) score on both courts. U-M's 58th-ranked tandem of sophomore Brian Hung (Hong Kong, China/Sagemont Virtual School) and freshman Matko Maravic (Zagreb, Croatia/V. Gimnazija) closed out Dymtro Ishtuganov and Jakub Praibis at No. 1 to clinch the first team point, while seniors David Anving (Tvaaker, Sweden/Varbergs Gymnasieskola) and Vinny Gossain (Okemos, Mich./Okemos HS) completed the sweep by outlasting Michael McCarthy and Dara McLoughlin at No. 3.
Hung put the Wolverines on top 2-0 at the start of singles, easily defeating Recht 6-2, 6-3 to improve his dual match record to 13-7. The Hoosiers then earned their first point with a win at No. 3, as Heller fell victim to David Bubenicek by an identical margin. Stone pulled Indiana even with a 6-2, 6-0 triumph over Anving at No. 6.
Maravic, ranked 87th in the nation, continued his late-season surge and brought U-M within one match of claiming the team victory by knocking off No. 57 Praibis 6-3, 6-4 at No. 1. Sophomore Steve Peretz (Brooklyn, N.Y./The Dwight School) stepped up and supplied Michigan with the match-clinching win, as he dealt Tom Bagnato a 7-5, 6-4 loss at No. 5. With the victory, Peretz improves to 12-9 in 2005, including a 6-3 mark in league play.
Soon after Peretz's clincher, Fischer battled his way to a 6-4, 7-5 win over Neil Kenner at No. 4 for Michigan's final point of the match. Fischer is 7-3 against dual match opponents this season, with a solid 5-1 mark in the Big Ten.
The Wolverines close out the regular season tomorrow (Sunday, April 24) with a noon match against Penn State at the Varsity Tennis Center. Michigan will honor its four seniors -- Anving, Fischer, Gossain and Michael Rubin (Canton, Ohio/Canton Central Catholic HS) -- prior to the match against the Nittany Lions.
Following are match-by-match results:
Singles
No. 1 -- #87 Matko Maravic (U-M) d. #57 Jakub Praibis, 6-3, 6-4
No. 2 -- Brian Hung (U-M) d. Ryan Recht, 6-2, 6-3
No. 3 -- David Bubenicek (IU) d. Ryan Heller, 6-2, 6-3
No. 4 -- Josef Fischer (U-M) d. Neil Kenner, 6-4, 7-5
No. 5 -- Steve Peretz (U-M) d. Tom Bagnato, 7-5, 6-4
No. 6 -- John Stone (IU) d. David Anving, 6-2, 6-0
Doubles
No. 1 -- #58 Hung/Maravic (U-M) d. Dmytro Ishtuganov/Praibis, 9-8(5)
No. 2 -- Fischer/Heller (U-M) d. Recht/Stone, 8-3
No. 3 -- Vinny Gossain/Anving (U-M) d. Michael McCarthy/Dara McLoughlin, 9-8(5)
Order of Completion: Doubles 2-1-3, Singles 2-3-6-1-5-4
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
