April 18, 2004
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Michigan State proved to be no match for Purdue, as the 68th-ranked Boilermaker men's tennis team dispatched the 59th-ranked Spartans 6-1 in East Lansing on Sunday. Purdue, which has won three matches in a row, now owns a 9-10 overall record and a 4-4 Big Ten mark, while Michigan State is 14-12 and 1-7.
Purdue head coach Tim Madden was pleased to see the energy from the Boilermakers' win Saturday at Michigan carry over.
"This is a very encouraging win for us because we proved to ourselves that we can put strong performances together on back-to-back days," Madden said. "I am sure no one thought we would be able to pull out a sweep this weekend, but I think we are very comfortable being the underdog."
Purdue swept through doubles, winning all three matches to claim the first point of the day. Juniors Sounak Chatterjee and Filip Koziell were off the court first, beating Cameron Marshall and Eric Simonton 8-4 at No. 2. The sophomore combo of Paul Rose and Colin Foster came off next, beating Mike Brown and Anthony Stefani 8-5 at No. 3. Senior Troy Havens and junior David Robinson finished things off with an 8-5 victory over Andrew Formanczyk and Chris Mitchell at No. 1.
Madden said getting off to a good start against the Spartans was critical.
"It was important for us to establish ourselves right away in order to build confidence," Madden said. "If we let them into the match early, we would have been in for a very long day."
The Boilermakers kept the pressure on in singles. Rose made quick work of the 77th-ranked Formanczyk, upsetting the Spartans' top player 6-2, 6-2 at No. 1. Michigan native Eric Hodgman, a freshman, followed with a 6-4, 6-2 defeat of Josh Efros at No. 6. Foster beat Stefani 7-6, 6-3 at No. 5 to clinch the match.
Adding singles victories were Chatterjee at No. 4, and Havens at No. 2, both in three sets. Michigan State's lone win came in the final match, a three-set victory by Mitchell over Robinson at No. 3.
Madden was pleased with the entire Boilermaker roster, but particularly with Rose.
"Paul sets the tone for us day in and day out," Madden said. "He accepts every challenge, and more than that he is a model for everyone else. His teammates are starting to follow his lead."
Purdue will conclude its regular season this coming weekend. The Boilermakers will play at league-leading and No. 1-ranked Illinois on April 23, and will play host to Indiana in the finale on April 24. The Big Ten Championships will be held April 29 to May 2, in East Lansing.
#68 Purdue 6, #59 Michigan State 1Singles1. Paul Rose (PU) def. #77 Andrew Formanczyk (MSU) 6-2, 6-22. Troy Havens (PU) def. Cameron Marshall (MSU) 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-43. Chris Mitchell (MSU) def. David Robinson (PU) 2-6, 6-3, 7-6(9)4. Sounak Chatterjee (PU) def. Eric Simonton (MSU) 2-6, 7-6(4), 1-0(12-10)5. Colin Foster (PU) def. Anthony Stefani (MSU) 7-6(4), 6-36. Eric Hodgman (PU) def. Josh Efros (MSU) 6-4, 6-2- P -
Doubles1. Havens/Robinson (PU) def. Formanczyk/Mitchell (MSU) 8-52. Chatterjee/Filip Koziell (PU) def. Marshall/Simonton (MSU) 8-43. Foster/Rose (PU) def. Brown/Stefani (MSU) 8-5
Order of Singles Finish: 1, 6, 5, 4, 2, 3Order of Doubles Finish: 2, 3, 1
Purdue: 9-10 (4-4 Big Ten)Michigan State: 14-12 (1-7 Big Ten)