April 6, 2014
LINCOLN, Neb. - A dominating performance by the 33rd-ranked Purdue men's tennis team earned the Boilermakers a 6-1 win over No. 66 Nebraska Sunday at the NU Vine Street Courts. Senior Aaron Dujovne was credited with clinching the sixth consecutive match for Purdue thanks to his straight-set victory at the No. 4 singles position. The Boilermakers pushed their record to 13-3, 5-1 Big Ten and 7-3 against nationally ranked opponents. The Huskers slipped to 10-10, 2-4 Big Ten with the loss.
When the Boilermakers claim the doubles point they are on track to victory and against Nebraska it was no different. They jumped out to the early lead, but they had to rally for it. The Huskers put the pressure on by winning the first match as Marc Herrmann and Dusty Boyer narrowly defeated Purdue's Diego Acosta and Dujovne at the No. 2 spot, 8-6.
At No. 1, Szymon Tatarczyk and Ricky Medinilla evened the slate for the Boilermakers as they went to the breaker with Brandon Videtich and Bradford Zitsch and prevailed, 8-7 (7-4). The senior/freshman combo owns an unblemished record at 7-0.
The point rested on the outcome at No. 3 and Purdue's Mark Kovacs and Mateus Silva didn't disappoint. They won their fourth straight match by defeating Tom Blackwell and Scott Elsass, 8-5.
Silva registered his team-best 12th consecutive win as he made easy work of Nebraska's Bradford Zitsch. The 13-1 sophomore has won 11 matches in straight sets, including a 6-0, 6-3 of the Husker in the No. 6 position. Purdue's lead grew to 3-0 courtesy of Kovac's three-setter over Blackwell, 0-6, 6-1, 6-1. The Budapest, Hungary, native, is now 3-1 in matches pushed to a decisive third set. The senior has won six straight and owns a record of 12-3.
Nebraska's lone point ensued with Boyer's 6-3, 6-3, win at No. 1 over Tatarczyk. Dujovne used a 6-4, 6-3 victory to get past Andrew Dzulynsky and clinch the dual for Purdue. In doing so he improved his senior record to 10-2.
Medinilla followed with his fifth straight win, a 6-3, 7-6 (7-3) defeat of Herrmann while playing in the No. 2 position. Rounding out the Boilermakers' efforts was Acosta at No. 5. Hailing from Cuenca, Ecuador, Acosta went back and forth with Nebraska's Vasileios Stavropoulos, 6-2, 3-6, respectively, but came out on top in the decisive third set, 6-3. He pushed his junior campaign mark to 10-4.
Purdue currently sits in third in the Big Ten Conference standings behind top-ranked Ohio State (22-2, 7-0 Big Ten) and No. 24 Penn State (19-2, 6-1 Big Ten). Both teams are on the docket as just two weeks remain in the regular season and both teams will have to come to West Lafayette. In what will be a critical week for the Boilermakers' season and place in program history, they will first host Indiana (12-13, 1-5 Big Ten) Wednesday at 1 p.m. ET at the Schwartz Tennis Center. They will then welcome the Nittany Lions Friday at 1 p.m., and the Buckeyes come to town two days later for a 12 p.m. match on Sunday.
No. 33 Purdue 6, No. 66 Nebraska 1 | Box Score
Doubles
1: Ricky Medinilla/Szymon Tatarczyk (Purdue) def. Brandon Videtich/Bradford Zitsch (Nebraska), 8-7 (7-4)
2: Marc Herrmann/Dusty Boyer (Nebraska) def. Diego Acosta/Aaron Dujovne (Purdue), 8-6
3: Mark Kovacs/Mateus Silva (Purdue) def. Tom Blackwell/Scott Elsass (Nebraska), 8-5
Singles
1: Dusty Boyer (Nebraska) def. Szymon Tatarczyk (Purdue), 6-3, 6-3
2: Ricky Medinilla (Purdue) def. Marc Herrmann (Nebraska), 6-3, 7-6 (7-3)
3: Mark Kovacs (Purdue) def. Tom Blackwell (Nebraska), 0-6, 6-1, 6-1
4: Aaron Dujovne (Purdue) def. Andrew Dzulynsky (Nebraska), 6-4, 6-3
5: Diego Acosta (Purdue) def. Vasileios Stavropoulos (Nebraska), 6-2, 3-6, 6-3
6: Mateus Silva (Purdue) def. Bradford Zitsch (Nebraska), 6-0, 6-3