Jan. 21, 2008
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue claimed four singles victories over No. 59 Western Michigan during the third and final day of the Boilermaker Invitational Monday at the Schwartz Tennis Center.
The late afternoon heroics came after Purdue dropped all three of its doubles matches to the Broncos.
"I didn't know who we were after doubles," said head coach Tim Madden. "Maybe we were embarrassed. But we went back out there and kicked some butt in singles. I like this lineup. We have a lot to work with."
Junior P.J. Rose, sophomore Branko Kuzmanovic and freshman Eric Ramos all won in straight sets. Newcomer Slavko Bijelica worn down Alex Birchmeier over three sets, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, to earn his first career victory as a Boilermaker.
Ramos, who was the first done after beating Kazuya Komada 6-2, 6-2, finished the weekend with a 3-0 singles record.
Madden said if he had a vote for tournament MVP, he'd give it to Ramos.
"Eric consistently rose to the occasion in both singles and doubles," said Madden. "He possesses so much confidence for a freshman. And he's always thinking about how he's going to win the match, not just one individual point."
Rose and sophomore Paul Foley were the only other Boilermakers to complete the weekend with a winning record. Rose (2-1) handed WMU's Bryan Norville his first loss of the invitational with a 6-4, 6-4 triumph on court three.
Foley (2-1) lost his match in straight sets Monday, snapping a modest two-match winning streak.
Kuzmanovich broke his two-match losing streak with a solid 6-3, 6-3 victory over the Broncos' Kevin Hayward, who is ranked 30th in the Midwest Region by the ITA.
Kuzmanovic believes he'll keep getting better as the season progresses.
"I haven't played this many matches in a weekend over the last three months, so I'm still getting into that match mentality," said Kuzmanovic. "I just need to keep playing so I can start competing the way I know I can."
Earlier in the day, junior Kelubia Mabatah won his first match of 2008, 6-4, 6-4 over Drake's Konrad Kamizelich to even his spring record at 1-1.
The team's overall singles record this weekend was marked at 12-11 (.522). The Boilermakers won 33 percent of their doubles matches.
Purdue's anticipated dual season starts Saturday with a 1 p.m. home match against regional rival Marquette. The Boilermakers also will play host to Butler Sunday at noon.
Madden said the weekend tournament has prepared the team well for its upcoming challenges.
"All our opponents this weekend were nationally ranked and past NCAA Tournament qualifiers, and I felt we rose to the occassion each time we were out there," said Madden. "If our confidence level is consistent at each position, then we'll meet nothing but success."
Admission to all regular season home varsity tennis matches is free.