April 2, 2012
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- =”” li=”” br=”” a=”” video=”” hawkeye=”” free=”” network:=”” ten=”” big=””>24 Hawkeyes to Watch
THIS WEEK: The University of Iowa men’s tennis team has a three match home-stand this week. The Hawkeyes will host No. 70 Nebraska on Wednesday at 2 p.m. (CT), No. 23 Indiana on Friday at 2 p.m. (CT) and No. 65 Purdue on Sunday at noon (CT). All matches will be played at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Complex.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS: Nebraska (8-9, 1-3) is coming off its first ever Big Ten win, a 4-3 decision over Penn State. Nebraska’s Christopher Aumueller is ranked No. 79 in singles and Benedikt Lindheim is ranked 95th. Aumueller and Lindheim are ranked 19th together in doubles. Indiana (14-7, 2-3) fell 5-2 to Michigan in their last match. The Hoosiers have one ranked doubles tandem. Purdue (7-9, 1-3) is coming off a 6-1 loss to Michigan State.
LAST TIME OUT: The Hawkeyes fell 5-2 to Penn State on March 30 and fell 7-0 to second-ranked Ohio State on April 1. The Hawkeyes won the doubles point against the Nittany Lions, winning the No. 2 and No. 3 doubles match. Freshman Matt Hagan and senior Will Vasos teamed up to win their doubles match, as did sophomore Jonas Dierckx and senior Tom Mroziewicz. Junior Garret Dunn won at No. 2 singles in a nail-biter, winning 7-6 (4), 7-6 (6).
DUNN LEADING TEAM: Junior Garret Dunn has led the Hawkeyes in singles this season. Dunn has the most singles wins on the team with seven. The Tempe, Ariz., native has worked his way up to the No. 2 singles position.
STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE: Five of Iowa’s seven final opponents are currently nationally ranked by the ITA. The Hawkeyes have competed against seven ranked teams in their last eight matches, and have seen eight ranked teams overall.
NEWCOMERS TO LINEUP: Four Hawkeyes have made the first dual singles appearance of their collegiate careers this season. Junior Connor Gilmore has played three matches this season. Freshman Andres Estenssoro played No. 6 singles against Illinois. Sophomore Joey White has played two singles matches. Sophomore Michael Swank competed at No. 6 singles against Western Michigan. Swank has been a doubles regular all season.
HEAD COACH Steve Houghton Steve Houghton, the dean of Big Ten tennis coaches, is in his 31st year as head coach of the Hawkeyes. He has compiled a career record of 332-353 (.485), recording the most wins of any coach in Iowa men’s tennis history. Houghton recorded his 300th win at Indiana State Feb. 6, 2009. He became the winningest coach in Iowa tennis history in 1992 and is a member of the Iowa Tennis Hall of Fame
UP NEXTThe Hawkeyes will face Michigan State in East Lansing, Mich., on April 14 and No. 34 Michigan in Ann Arbor, Mich., on April 15.
