Jan. 30, 2010
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The Purdue men's tennis team earned a 5-2 win over Ball State in front of a raucous crowd Saturday afternoon on the Basham Courts inside the Schwartz Tennis Center.
"It's nice to be 5-0," head coach Pawel Gajdzik said. "The coaching staff felt like today was the first time we fought at every position. We got into matches and put ourselves in positions to win. The doubles point was huge, and then we came out strong in singles. Ball State came in ready to play and was very competitive."
Purdue (5-0) took an early advantage by winning the doubles point. Senior Paul Foley and sophomore Matt Manasse remained unbeaten this season with an 8-3 victory over Shaun Bussert and Derek Carpenter at No. 3. Ball State (2-2) tied the competition when Eduardo Pavia and Cliff Morrison picked up an 8-6 win over senior P.J. Rose and junior Eric Ramos at No. 1. The point was decided during an exciting, back-and-forth match at No. 2 that ultimately went the way of the Boilermakers when senior Slavko Bijelica and sophomore Thomas Wilson finished a 9-8 (6) defeat of Andres Monroy and Zane Smith.
The Boilermakers extended their lead as the match moved to singles play. Ramos provided the first blow as he improved to 5-0 in singles this season with his 6-3, 6-0 win over Monroy at No. 3. The Cardinals tightened the gap when Pavia handed Bijelica his first singles loss of the season courtesy of a 6-4, 6-2 decision at No. 1, and then pulled even when Dalton Albertin earned a 6-3, 6-4 win over Manasse at No. 5.
Rose then pulled Purdue ahead once and for all with his victory at No. 2. The Highland, Ill., native improved to 2-1 this season at the second spot in the singles lineup with his 7-6 (5), 6-3 defeat of Morrison. Foley clinched the match and stretched his singles record to 5-0 this season when he beat Alex Brym 6-3, 7-6 (5) at No. 4. In the only three-set match of the day, Wilson battled back to beat Bussert 5-7, 6-2, 6-3 at No. 6 to reach the final margin.
"This was a win we expected to get," Foley said. "I thought we did a great job staying composed. Ball State is a very fiery team that came in here determined to beat us. I felt like we were tougher in the end. It is no coincidence that we keep winning three-set matches. Coach Gajdzik really deserves credit for keeping me focused in my match. A lot of credit should go to him. We aren't getting too cocky, but we are not surprised to be 5-0 and want to keep winning."
The Boilermakers are off to their fastest start since the 2007 squad began the season with seven consecutive victories. Purdue wraps up its season-opening stretch of six straight home matches Friday when it hosts Toledo at 6 p.m. ET.