Northwestern
Ohio State
Northwestern Falls to No. 19 Ohio State
4/16/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
April 16, 2004
COLUMBUS, Ohio--A top-25 team and the top player in the nation proved to be too much for Northwestern's 42nd-ranked men's tennis team, as it was defeated 5-2 by No. 19 Ohio State and consequently fell to 13-6 (4-3 Big Ten) and fifth in the conference standings.
The Wildcats will most likely have to win their remaining three contests in order to earn a first-round bye (fifth place or higher) at the Big Ten Championship.
"Even with this loss, I am confident we can bounce back and still finish in the top five," said head coach Paul Torricelli. "As long as we continue to play well, we can sweep our remaining matches."
NU fell at the Nos. 1 and 3 spots in doubles to lose the point but managed to win at No. 2 to prevent the sweep. Tommy Hanus (Palatine, Ill./Palatine) and Christian Tempke (Wentorf, Germany/Gymnasium Lohbr?gge) outgunned Scott Green and Ross Wilson, winning the tiebreaker 7-0 for the 9-8 triumph.
Down 3-0, including Hanus' loss to No. 1 Jeremy Wurtzman, the 'Cats got on the board with Tempke's 6-3, 6-4 decision over Joey Atas at No. 2 singles.
Unfortunately, the Buckeyes (18-3, 6-1) clinched the match with their next win, which came at the fifth spot. Adam Schaechterle (Oconomowoc, Wis./Kettle Moraine) scored NU's other point by taking down Wilson 7-5, 6-4 at No. 6.
"We have a lot of respect for Ohio State," said Torricelli. "They are certainly deserving of their high ranking."
The Wildcats will have a day off before playing Penn State at 11 a.m. (CT) Sunday in State College, Pa.
No. 19 Ohio State 5, No. 42 Northwestern 2
Singles
No. 1 -- #1 Jeremy Wurtzman (OSU) def. Tommy Hanus (NU), 6-4, 6-1
No. 2 -- Christian Tempke (NU) def. Joey Atas (OSU), 6-3, 6-4
No. 3 -- Chris Klingemann (OSU) def. Chuck Perrin (NU), 6-3, 7-5
No. 4 -- Devin Mullings (OSU) def. Willy Lock (NU), 6-1, 6-2
No. 5 -- Dennis Mertens (OSU) def. Matt Christian (NU), 6-2, 6-3
No. 6 -- Adam Schaechterle (NU) def. Ross Wilson (OSU), 7-5, 6-4
Doubles
No. 1 -- #56 Atas/Wurtzman (OSU) def. Justin Hoeveler/Perrin (NU), 8-2
No. 2 -- Hanus/Tempke (NU) def. Scott Green/Wilson (OSU), 9-8 (0)
No. 3 -- Brenton Contini/Mertens (OSU) def. Christian/Schaechterle (NU), 8-2
Players Mentioned
