April 6, 2012
IOWA CITY – The University of Iowa men’s tennis team fell to No. 33 Indiana on Friday on the Klotz Outdoor Tennis Courts at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Complex. The Hoosiers (15-7, 3-3) defeated Iowa (1-16, 0-6) 6-1.
The Hawkeyes had two big highlights on the day with a No. 2 singles win from senior Will Vasos and a No. 1 doubles win from junior Garret Dunn and sophomore Michael Swank against a ranked doubles opponent.
“Indiana is clearly one of the best teams we’ve played this season, particularly in doubles,” said head coach Steve Houghton. “We had two big wins that I was proud of. Our doubles win against a 66th ranked doubles team was big, and Will had a great win in singles. I feel like we are playing better and better, it’s just not showing up on the scoreboard yet.”
Vasos played his best match of the season, playing flawless tennis from start to finish against Indiana’s Josh MacTaggart, who had a 13-5 dual singles record coming into the match. Rarely missing a shot, Vasos won the match in straight sets, winning 6-4, 6-1. After forcing match-point, Vasos hit a blistering serve down the line for an ace to secure the victory.
“I’ve been working hard all season and keeping a positive attitude,” said Vasos, a native of Fort Collins, Colo. “It feels good to finally have it all click. I wish it didn’t come so late in the season for me, but I’ll take the win. Hopefully, this will provide me and the team some confidence moving forward.”
After Vasos’ No. 2 singles win tied the match at 1-1, the Hoosiers won the remaining five singles matches to finish play.
Iowa entered singles play with momentum thanks to a great performance from Dunn and Swank, who defeated the 66th-ranked doubles team in the nation in Isade Juneau and Jeremy Langer, 8-6. Holding a 7-6 lead, a perfectly placed serve from Dunn resulted in an ace and forced match-point. Another strong serve by Dunn was unable to be returned in play by the Hoosiers, sealing the victory for the Hawkeye No. 1 doubles team. Dunn and Swank have six dual doubles wins this spring season, leading the team in doubles victories.
Iowa ran into two tough doubles teams in No. 2 and No. 3 doubles play, as Indiana won both matches by an 8-1 margin to win the doubles point and take a 1-0 lead heading into singles play.
The Hawkeyes will return to the courts on Sunday, hosting Purdue (7-9, 1-3) at the HTRC. The match is slated to begin at noon (CT).
No. 33 Indiana 6, Iowa 1
Singles
No. 1 – Isade Juneau (IND) def. Matt Hagan (IOWA) 7-5, 6-1
No. 2 – Will Vasos (IOWA) def. Josh MacTaggart (IND) 6-4, 6-1
No. 3 – Jeremy Langer (IND) def. Garret Dunn (IOWA) 6-3, 6-3
No. 4 – Stephen Vogl (IND) def. Jonas Dierckx (IOWA) 6-4, 7-6
No. 5 – Will Kendall (IND) def. Tom Mroziewicz (IOWA) 6-2, 6-1
No. 6 – Dimitrije Tasic (IND) def. Christopher Speer (IOWA) 6-0, 6-0
Order of finish: 2, 6, 5, 3, 4, 1
Doubles
No. 1 – Dunn/Michael Swank (IOWA) def. #66 Juneau/Langer (IND) 8-6
No. 2 – MacTaggart/Alastair Barnes (IND) def. Hagan/Vasos (IOWA) 8-1
No. 3 – Vogl/Kendall (IND) def. Mroziewicz/Dierckx (IOWA) 8-1
Order of finish: 2, 3, 1