April 10, 2004
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The Purdue men's tennis team suffered a 7-0 defeat at the hands of No. 19 Ohio State at the Varsity Tennis Courts on Saturday. The loss dropped the 75th-ranked Boilermakers to 6-10 overall and 1-4 in the Big Ten, while the victory improved the Buckeyes to 15-2 and 5-0 in the league heading into a match against top-ranked Illinois on Sunday in Champaign.
Purdue, which came into the Ohio State contest on a three-match losing skid, saw the Buckeyes take the first point by winning two of three doubles matches. The lone Boilermaker team to post a victory was that of sophomore Paul Rose and freshman Scott Warner, which beat Dennis Mertens and Brenton Contini 9-7 at No. 3.
The Boilermakers played tough in singles, but ran out of gas. Rose, who took on the nation's top-ranked singles player in Jeremy Wurtzman, went to the brink before falling 7-6, 7-5 at No. 1. Senior Troy Havens lost to Joey Atas in a three-set match at No. 2. Junior David Robinson also lost in an extended match, as Chris Klingemann handed him a 6-7, 6-1, 14-12 defeat at No. 3 in the final match off the court.
Purdue head coach Tim Madden praised the performances of both Rose and Warner.
"I believe that Paul made Jeremy Wurtzman play his best tennis. I was very impressed with how he competed," Madden said. "Scott is getting better and better every match. He's getting more and more confident, and that's what we need throughout the lineup."
Madden hopes the Boilermakers' effort against the Buckeyes can be duplicated in Sunday's match against Penn State, which is slated to begin at noon.
"Hopefully this match will make us a little tougher against Penn State," Madden said. "We need a win. It's been awhile."
The Purdue-Penn State match will take place either at the Varsity Tennis Courts or the Lafayette Sports Center, depending on weather conditions.
#19 Ohio State 7, #75 Purdue 0Singles1. Jeremy Wurtzman (OSU) def. Paul Rose (PU) 7-6, 7-5 *2. Joey Atas (OSU) def. Troy Havens (PU) 4-6, 6-4, 6-03. Chris Klingemann (OSU) def. David Robinson (PU) 6-7, 6-1, 14-124. Devin Mullings (OSU) def. Colin Foster (PU) 6-4, 6-35. Dennis Mertens (OSU) def. Eric Hodgman (PU) 6-3, 6-26. Ross Wilson (OSU) def. Jarred Leibner (PU) 6-4, 6-4
Doubles1. Wurtzman/Atas (OSU) def. Havens/Robinson (PU) 8-62. Scott Green/Wilson (OSU) def. Sounak Chatterjee/Filip Koziell (PU) 8-33. Rose/Scott Warner (PU) def. Mertens/Brenton Contini (OSU) 9-7
Order of singles finish: 6, 5, 1, 4, 2, 3Order of doubles finish: 2, 3, 1
* Denotes match-clinching win.
Purdue: 6-10 (1-4 Big Ten)Ohio State: 15-2 (5-0 Big Ten)
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