Weekly Release #11
4/6/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Upcoming Schedule
Friday, April 9 -- at Indiana State (Terre Haute, Ind.), 11 a.m. EST/CDT
Saturday, April 10 -- at Indiana (Bloomington, Ind.), Noon EST/CDT
Saturday, April 17 -- vs. Purdue (Varsity Tennis Center), Noon
Sunday, April 18 -- vs. Illinois (Varsity Tennis Center), Noon
This Week
The No. 50 University of Michigan men's tennis team (10-5, 1-3 Big Ten) will travel to the state of Indiana for a pair of dual matches this weekend. The Wolverines will visit Terre Haute, Ind., on Friday (April 9) for an 11 a.m. EST/CDT meeting with Indiana State at the Duane Klueh Tennis Complex. U-M will then head to Bloomington, Ind., on Saturday (April 10) for a noon match with Indiana at the IU Tennis Center.
Scouting The Opponents
Indiana State -- The Sycamores (5-11), who face Ball State prior to their match with Michigan, ride a four-match winning streak into the week. Freshman Aaron Phillips leads ISU with a team-best 8-9 record this season. Ryan Ray is in his first season as head coach at Indiana State, which finished with a 16-10 record and a fifth consecutive Missouri Valley Conference title last year. The Wolverines edged out the Sycamores 4-3 last season in Ann Arbor, improving their all-time record against ISU to 1-2. Indiana State on the Internet: www.indstate.edu/athletic.
Indiana -- The No. 68-ranked Hoosiers (8-8, 2-2 Big Ten), who will host Michigan State before taking on Michigan, are coming off a solid 6-1 road win over Penn State last weekend. Junior Tom Bagnato holds team highs in overall wins (13-10) and dual match wins (10-5) this season, while junior Jakub Praibis is ranked 60th nationally with a 12-4 record at No. 1. Indiana is led by head coach Ken Hydinger, who is in his 19th season at the school. Last year, the Hoosiers finished 12-11 overall, including a 3-7 mark in conference play. The Wolverines knocked off Indiana 4-3 last season at the Varsity Tennis Center, improving their all-time advantage over IU to 52-12-1. Indiana on the Internet: www.iuhoosiers.com.
Last Week
Michigan went 2-1 in its three Big Ten Conference matches at the Varsity Tennis Center last week. The Wolverines earned their first conference victory of the season with a 4-3 decision over Michigan State on Wednesday (March 31). After winning the doubles point, U-M slipped by the Spartans with three wins in singles play. Michigan earned the doubles point once again in their match with Minnesota on Saturday (April 3) but dropped four of six in singles to allow the Gophers to steal a 4-3 win in a match that lasted nearly five hours. The Wolverines regrouped and pounded Iowa 7-0 on Sunday (April 4), as they were victorious in all nine matches without surrendering a single set to the Hawkeyes.
Jackson Reaches 70
Senior co-captain Anthony Jackson (Glendale, Wis./Nicolet HS) earned his 70th career singles victory at Michigan with his 6-3, 6-3 defeat of Iowa's Chaitu Malempati at No. 2 on Sunday (April 4). In four seasons wearing the Maize and Blue, Jackson has posted an overall record of 70-59, including a 43-36 mark in dual match play. He is 8-7 in dual match play this season, including wins in four of his last five matches at No. 2.
20/20
Junior co-captain Michael Rubin (Canton, Ohio/Canton Central Catholic HS) reached his team-high 20th win of the season after a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Iowa's Sebastian Delgado at No. 1 last Sunday (April 4). Rubin, who finished the fall season with a 13-5 mark, holds a 7-6 dual match record at No. 1. It marks the second straight season that Rubin has notched at least 20 wins in a season, as he finished 25-12 in his first year at U-M (2002-03) after transferring from the University of Washington.
What a Run!
Junior David Anving (Tvaaker, Sweden/Varbergs Gymnasieskola) continued to steamroll through his dual match competition last week, earning victories in all three matches. On Wednesday (March 31) against the Spartans, Anving's comeback victory over Mike Brown (5-7, 6-1, 6-2) clinched the team win over MSU, and he was one of only two Wolverines to earn singles victories in the Minnesota match on Saturday (April 3), defeating Brian Lipinski 6-4, 1-6, 7-5. Anving capped off the weekend with a 7-5, 6-4 win over Iowa's Jonny Hoak on Sunday (April 4).
After dropping his first dual match of the season against Western Michigan (Jan. 17), Anving has been on a tear with victories in 10 of his last 11 matches. He is 12-7 overall in 2003-04, including a team-best 11-2 (.846) mark in dual match play at No. 4, No. 5 and No. 6. With two more singles wins, Anving will have 40 for his career at Michigan. In three seasons, he has compiled an overall singles mark of 38-27, including an impressive 34-18 (.654) record in dual match action.
Fischer Makes Season Debut in Singles
Junior Josef Fischer (Nuernberg, Germany/Bradenton Academy) competed in his first dual singles match of the season against Iowa (April 4) and played a large part in Michigan's 7-0 sweep of the Hawkeyes. After teaming with Vinny Gossain for an 8-6 win over Aaron Schaechterle and Matis Jasicek at No. 3, Fischer dominated Jasicek 6-2, 6-1 at No. 6. With a 7-3 overall record in 2003-04, Fischer is two singles wins shy of 25 for his career at U-M (23-20).
Double Your Pleasure
The Wolverines took the doubles point from all three of their opponents last week, winning all but two of the nine matches contested. Michigan has won the doubles point against 10 of its 15 opponents this season.
Net Points ...
With his win with Steve Peretz at No. 3 against Michigan State (March 31), junior Vinny Gossain (Okemos, Mich./Okemos HS) reached his 25th career doubles win at Michigan. In three seasons, Gossain has collected an overall doubles record of 27-29, including an 18-19 dual match mark.
Freshman Ryan Heller (Northbrook, Ill./Glenbrook North HS) is two wins shy of 20 for his singles career. In his first season, Heller has compiled an overall singles record of 18-10, including an impressive 10-4 mark in dual match action.
With his win with Michael Rubin at No. 2 against Minnesota (April 3), Ryan Heller earned his 10th career doubles victory at Michigan. In his first season, Heller has posted an overall doubles mark of 11-12, including a 9-6 mark in dual match play.
Senior Anthony Jackson is one doubles win shy of 40 for his dual match career. In four seasons at U-M, Jackson has collected a dual match record of 39-39.
With his victory with Ryan Heller at No. 2 against Michigan State (March 31), junior Michael Rubin earned his 30th career doubles victory. In three seasons, Rubin has compiled an overall record of 32-36, including a 18-24 mark in dual match action.
The Wolverines are 3-5 against nationally ranked opponents this season.
Rubin Ranked 55th Nationally in Singles
Michael Rubin is listed No. 55 in the most recent ITA national singles rankings (April 6). The co-captain has collected an overall record of 20-11 in 2003-04, including a 7-6 dual match record at No. 1.
Michigan No. 50 in National Rankings
The Wolverines enter this weekend's matches with a No. 50 ranking in the most recent ITA national poll, released Tuesday (April 6). This season, Michigan has been ranked as high as No. 42 and has dropped as low as No. 57. U-M is one of five Big Ten teams ranked in the Top 50. Defending national champion Illinois still holds down the No. 1 spot, while Ohio State (No. 19), Minnesota (No. 31) and Northwestern (No. 42) round out the conference representation in the poll.
Meet the Head Coach
Mark Mees is in his fifth season with the Wolverine men's tennis program and has compiled an overall record of 62-44, including a 21-23 mark in the Big Ten. Mees has led Michigan to three NCAA Championship appearances in his four years as head coach, including a trip to the second round in his first season (1999-2000). Last season Mees reached his second major coaching milestone, earning his 50th career win at Michigan with a 4-3 victory over Indiana State in Ann Arbor.
Next Week
The Wolverines close out their home schedule next weekend with a pair of noon matches at the Varsity Tennis Center. Michigan will host Purdue on Saturday (April 17) and No. 1-ranked Illinois on Sunday (April 18). U-M will honor departing senior Anthony Jackson prior to the match with the Fighting Illini.
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
