Feb. 11, 2011
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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Iowa men’s tennis team was defeated by Arkansas to start off their stay in Fayetteville, where they will play two matches in two days. The 71st-ranked Razorbacks (2-1 overall) defeated the No. 74 Hawkeyes (1-2) overall by a 6-1 count at the Billingsley Tennis Center on Friday.
Junior Will Vasos pulled through with comeback heroics in his singles match, and also rallied to win on the doubles side with classmate Marc Bruche.
Against Arkansas’ Gregoire Lehman, Vasos was down in the first set 5-3 in the No. 3 singles position. Vasos looked strong from there, rallying to win the first set 7-6. In the second set, Vasos jumped off to a strong start this time around, claiming the match with a 6-4 second set win.
The victory provided Iowa’s lone point on the evening, and the Fort Collins, Colorado, native improved his singles record to 3-0 on the season.
Vasos and Bruche teamed up in doubles for the first time this season, and made the most of it. The duo downed Arkansas’ Matt Hogan and Matt Walters 8-6. The set was tied at 6-6, but Vasos and Bruche finished strong with the final two points. Vasos and Bruche both have two doubles victories on the season now.
The Razorbacks earned the team point for doubles, with their No. 2 and No. 3 doubles teams taking the victories. Iowa’s freshman Chase Tomlins cracked the lineup for the first time in his Hawkeye career, teaming up with senior Austen Kauss. Kauss and Tomlins were edged by Mike Ward and Nikolas Zogaj.
Arkansas took a 2-0 lead before Vasos answered for the Hawkeyes, but the Razorbacks won the remaining singles matches, three of which went into three sets. Bruche, Garret Dunn and Mitch Beckert each took one set in their match, put couldn’t pull out the victory.
The good news for Steve Houghton’s squad is that they won’t have to wait long to hit the courts again, as they will play this Saturday against Santa Clara in Fayetteville. Santa Clara is ranked 47th.
No. 71 Arkansas 6,No. 74 Iowa 1
Singles ResultsChris Nott (Ark) def. Marc Bruche (IOWA) 3-6, 6-2, 6-3Matt Hogan (Ark) def. Nikita Zotov (IOWA)Will Vasos (IOWA) def. Gregoire Lehman (Ark) 7-6, 6-4Nikolas Zogaj (Ark) def. Austen Kauss (IOWA) 6-4, 6-3Mike Ward (Ark) def. Garret Dunn (IOWA) 7-6, 3-6, 6-1Matt Walters (Ark) def. Mitch Beckert (IOWA) 3-6, 6-1, 6-0
Doubles ResultsMarc Bruche/Will Vasos (IOWA) def. Matt Hogan/Matt Walters (Ark) 8-6Gregoire Lehman/Chris Nott (Ark) def. Nikita Zotov/Garret Dunn (Iowa) 8-3Mike Ward/Nikolas Zogaj (Ark) def. Austen Kauss/Chase Tomlins (Iowa) 8-3="https://hawkeyesports.com/http:%3E%3C/ahref="http:>="https://hawkeyesports.com/http:%3E%3C/ahref="http:>="https://hawkeyesports.com/http:%3E%3C/ahref="http:>