Michigan
Illinois
Michigan Drops Big Ten Opener to No. 2-Ranked Illinois
2/23/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- No. 2-ranked Illinois snapped the University of Michigan men's tennis team's 11-match home winning streak, downing the Wolverines 6-1 Saturday afternoon (Feb. 23) at the Varsity Tennis Center. U-M (6-2, 0-1 Big Ten) suffered its second straight loss to a top 30-ranked squad (lost 4-3 against No. 26 Alabama on Feb. 17), with its only team point coming as sophomore Anthony Jackson (Glendale, Wis./Nicolet HS) won in three sets against Ann Arbor native Mike Kosta at No. 3 singles.
| | Jackson |
The Wolverines kept the Fighting Illini from a doubles sweep as senior Henry Beam (Kalamazoo, Mich./Loy Norrix HS) and freshman Matt Lockin (Lilburn, Ga./S.D. Independent Study) rallied from a 6-2 deficit to beat Phil Stolt and Brian Wilson at No. 2, winning a 9-8 match by an 8-6 score in a tiebreaker. Beam and Lockin, ranked 44th nationally in doubles, ran their record to 8-0 on the season.
Illinois put the match away with four straight-set victories and a three-set win in singles. Chris Martin posted a 6-1, 6-3 victory over freshman David Anving (Tvaaker, Sweden/Varsbergs Gymnasieskolu) at No. 6, while No. 33-ranked Stolt claimed a 6-2, 6-3 win over senior and No. 83-ranked Ben Cox (Spring Lake, Mich./Spring Lake HS) at No. 2. The Fighting Illini clinched the team victory as Zeder tallied a come-from-behind 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 win over Novak at the No. 5 spot.
With the match score 4-0, U-M's Lockin lost his first singles match of the season as Calkins won a 7-6(2), 6-4 match at No. 4. Illinois continued to roll, as No. 11-ranked Delic won a closely contested match at the top slot, defeating Beam in consecutive tie-breakers, 7-6(5), 7-6(6).
The Wolverines earned their only point as Jackson outlasted Kosta at No. 3, winning a 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 match to gain his 14th singles victory of the season. Jackson improved to 6-2 in dual match competition at No. 3 singles.
Michigan continues Big Ten Conference play tomorrow (Sunday, Feb. 24) against Northwestern at the Varsity Tennis Center. The match begins at noon.
Following are match-by-match results:
Singles
No. 1 -- #11 Amer Delic (IL) d. #57 Henry Beam, 7-6(5), 7-6(6)
No. 2 -- #33 Phil Stolt (IL) d. #83 Ben Cox, 6-2, 6-3
No. 3 -- Anthony Jackson (U-M) d. Mike Kosta, 6-4, 3-6, 6-1
No. 4 -- #127 Michael Calkins (IL) d. Matt Lockin, 7-6(2), 6-4
No. 5 -- #130 Nathan Zeder (IL) d. Greg Novak, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2
No. 6 -- Chris Martin (IL) d. David Anving, 6-1, 6-3
Doubles
No. 1 -- #8 Calkins/Delic (IL) d. Chris Shaya/Chris Rolf, 8-4
No. 2 -- #44 Beam/Lockin (U-M) d. Wilson/Stolt, 9-8(6)
No. 3 -- Kosta/Zeder (IL) d. Jackson/Novak, 8-6
Contact: David Ablauf (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
