April 24, 2011
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IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Iowa men’s tennis team concluded its regular season on the Klotz Outdoor Tennis Courts Sunday on Iowa’s Senior Day. The No. 66 Hawkeyes (8-12 overall, 2-8 in Big Ten) fell to No. 23 Minnesota (17-4, 8-2) 5-2.
Iowa won three matches against the Golden Gophers with singles wins coming from junior Will Vasos and freshman Jonas Dierckx, and a doubles win coming from junior Tom Mroziewicz and sophomore Garret Dunn.
“Minnesota is a top team nationally, and they showed that today,” said head coach Steve Houghton. “Having said that, Will continues to play great tennis, and I was very pleases with freshman Jonas Dierckx, who will be an important player for us in the next few years.”
The Hawkeyes honored seniors Austen Kauss and Nikita Zotov as they played their final match at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Center. Collectively, Kauss and Zotov are one win shy from 100 career victories as Kauss holds 54 and Zotov has 45.
“Over the past four years, we have come a long way as a program, and Austen and Nick (Nikita) have played a big part in that,” said Houghton.
Vasos pulled through for the Black and Gold in the most dramatic match of the day. Vasos dropped the first set 6-2 against Minnesota’s Rok Bonin in No. 2 singles, but claimed the second set 6-4. Vasos rallied to claim a 7-6 third set victory. Vasos finished the regular season with a team best 14-6 dual singles record.
Dierckx made the most of being placed into the singles lineup, rolling to a victory in No. 5 singles. Dierckx cruised past Minnesota’s Brendan Ruddock in straight sets, 6-1, 6-1. The win provided the freshman out of Purmerend, Netherlands, with his first Big Ten singles victory as a Hawkeye.
In No. 1 singles, Marc Bruche fell to No. 100 Tobias Wernet 6-2, 6-2. Bruche finished the regular season with ten dual singles wins. Kauss came up short despite a valiant effort against Sebastian Gallego in No. 3 singles (6-2, 6-4). Zotov was defeated by Minnesota’s Phillip Arndt in No. 4 singles 6-1, 6-1. Tom Mroziewicz fell to Minnesota’s Julian Dehn in a competitive No. 6 singles match (6-3, 6-4).
Dunn and Mroziewicz, just like they have all season, anchored the Hawkeyes with great doubles play in the No. 3 position to kick off the match. The duo defeated Minnesota’s Wernet and Ruddock 9-7 in a neck-and-neck contest. Dunn and Mroziewicz provided the team’s best winning percentage in doubles, as the duo finished with an 8-4 regular season record.
Bruche and Vasos made a comeback against the ranked tandem of Arndt and Gallego, but the Golden Gophers early lead was too much. Minnesota went up 5-1 in the match, and prevailed 8-5 in the No. 1 position. Arndt and Gallego are ranked 88th in the nation in doubles. Bruche and Vasos finished the regular season with a team high 12 doubles wins.
Kauss and Dierckx fell short in the No. 2 doubles match. The duo was defeated by Bonin and Dehn by an 8-3 margin.
Iowa will head to Madison, Wis. next week to begin postseason play. The Big Ten Tournament is slated to begin Thursday, April 28th. Action lasts all day, with the tournament concluding on Sunday.
There are ten Big Ten squads nationally ranked, including five within the top-27. Last season, the Hawkeyes earned an opening-round victory against Purdue in the tournament.
No. 23 Minnesota 5,No. 66 Iowa 2
SinglesNo. 100 Tobias Wernet (UM) def. Marc Bruche (IOWA) 6-2, 6-2Will Vasos (IOWA) def. Rok Bonin (UM) 2-6, 6-4, 7-6Sebastian Gallego (UM) def. Austen Kauss (IOWA) 6-2, 6-4Phillip Arndt (UM) def. Nikita Zotov (IOWA) 6-1, 6-1Jonas Dierckx (IOWA) def. Brendan Ruddock (UM) 6-1, 6-1Julian Dehn (UM) def. Tom Mroziewicz (IOWA) 6-3, 6-4
DoublesNo. 88 Arndt/Gallego (UM) def. Bruche/Vasos (IOWA) 8-5Bonin/Dehn (UM) def. Kauss/Dierckx (IOWA) 8-3Dunn/Tom Mroziewicz (IOWA) def. Wernet/Ruddock (UM) 9-7="https://hawkeyesports.com/http:%3E%3C/ahref="http:>="https://hawkeyesports.com/http:%3E%3C/ahref="http:>="https://hawkeyesports.com/http:%3E%3C/ahref="http:>