April 28, 2005
Champaign, IL – The Iowa men’s tennis team concluded its season with a 4-0 loss to eighth-seeded Michigan State in Big Ten Tournament action. The loss put a cap on a season in which the Hawkeyes made significant gains from the previous year, increasing their win total by seven matches.
Iowa, seeded ninth in the tournament, suffered heartbreak in the doubles contests, losing two matches in which the Hawkeyes had sizeable leads. Iowa’s lone win came from the freshmen duo of J.P Ritchie and Bart van Monsjou, who improved their conference record to 4-2 with an 8-3 victory at No. 3 doubles. At No. 1 doubles, Kyle Markham and Brett Taylor lost a close 9-7 decision to the 52nd-ranked pair of Andrew Formanczyk and Nick Rinks. Juniors Chaitu Malempati and Aaron Schaechterle were also involved in a close battle before falling 9-7 in their match at No. 2 doubles.
After losing the highly contested doubles point, the Hawkeyes were unable to rally from behind in singles play. Markham and Ritchie were quick exits, losing their matches in straight sets at No. 2 and No. 3 singles, respectively. Michigan State clinched the dual when Iowa’s Taylor suffered a 7-5, 7-5 setback at No. 5 singles. Iowa was competitive in the three matches left unfinished after the Spartans clinched the dual. At No. 1 singles, Malempati was tied at one set apiece against 118th-ranked Formanczyk, 0-6, 6-1. van Monsjou and Jonny Hoak also took a set in their matches before play was halted.
“Despite today’s loss, we feel we made substantial improvement this season,” said Head Coach Steve Houghton. “The future looks bright with everyone returning from this year’s roster, plus the addition of a talented recruiting class.”
After the tough loss, Iowa finishes its 2005 dual season with records of 10-12 overall and 2-9 in the Big Ten.
RESULTS
IOWA 0
Michigan State 4
Doubles
No.1 #52 Formanczyk/Rinks (MSU) def. Markham/Taylor (IOWA) 9-7
No. 2 Marshall/Flowers (MSU) def. Malempati/Schaechterle (IOWA) 9-7
No. 3 Ritchie/van Monsjou (IOWA) def. Brown/Monich (MSU) 8-3
Singles
No. 1 Chaitu Malempati (IOWA) vs. Andrew Formanczyk (MSU) 0-6, 6-1 (DNF)
No. 2 Cameron Marshall (MSU) def. Kyle Markham (IOWA) 6-4, 6-2
No. 3 Nick Rinks (MSU) def. J.P. Ritchie (IOWA) 6-2, 6-4
No. 4 Bart van Monsjou (IOWA) vs. Adam Monich (MSU) 6-3, 1-6 (DNF)
No. 5 Joe McWilliams (MSU) def. Brett Taylor (IOWA) 7-5, 7-5
No. 6 Jonny Hoak (IOWA) vs. Michael Flowers (MSU) 2-6, 7-5 (DNF)