After extending its winning streak to four matches Friday, the No. 40 UW men's tennis team was unable to keep the momentum going Saturday, dropping a 4-0 contest to No. 3 Ohio State (10-0 Big Ten, 26-1 overall) in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals at Schwartz Tennis Center in West Lafayette, Ind.
The fourth-seeded Badgers (6-4, 15-10) were unable to get anything going against an Ohio State singles lineup that features three players ranked in the top 30 in the nation. The Buckeyes' Drew Eberly clinched the match with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over the Badgers' Gian Hodgson at the No. 6 spot. The top three singles spots were abandoned following the decisive win. The Buckeyes led in all three matches.
In doubles, Ohio State nabbed two of three matches to take the first point. Senior captain Lachezar Kasarov and freshman Moritz Baumann had OSU's No. 14 doubles pair of Devin Mullings and Chris Klingemann on the ropes at the No. 1 spot. The Badger duo led 7-6 before the match was abandoned.
The top-seeded Buckeyes defeated No. 9 Illinois 4-1 in Sunday's championship match, winning the Big Ten Tournament for the second consecutive year. The Fighting Illini, the No. 3 seed, reached the championship after dropping No. 20 Michigan 4-1 Saturday.
On Friday, the Badgers clinched their first semifinal appearance in the tournament since 1994 after dropping No. 41 Penn State, the fifth seed, 4-0.
The Badgers nabbed two of three matches to take the doubles point and a 1-0 lead. The UW pair of junior Jeremy Sonkin and freshman Michael Muskievicz started the match off on a high note, taking out PSU's Brendan Lynch and Bradley Hunter 8-5 at the No. 3 spot. Junior Nolan Polley and freshman Michael Dierberger clinched the point, defeating James Dwyer and Adam Slagter of the Nittany Lions 8-6 at the No. 2 spot.
In singles, the Badgers swept the top three spots to end the match quickly. At the No. 1 spot, Baumann, currently ranked No. 112 in the country, rebounded from a first-set loss to defeat No. 81 Michael James of the Nittany Lions 4-6, 6-1, 6-0. Last Thursday, the Inzlingen, Germany, native was named to the 2007 All-Big Ten team, becoming the first UW freshman to do so since Ken Thomas in 1977.
Sonkin followed Baumann's win with a 6-4, 7-6 triumph over Slagter at the No. 3 spot. Polley wrapped things up for the Badgers with a 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 victory over Ryan Berger.
All the Badgers can do now is sit back and wait, as the field of 64 teams for the men's Division I NCAA Tournament will be released Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. on ESPNEWS. The Badgers, who have been a mainstay in the national top 50 for the majority of the season, will look to secure an at-large bid in the tournament.
A tournament appearance would be the first since 1998 for the Badgers. Play begins May 11 at campus sites yet to be determined.
—uwbadgers.com
contributed to this report.
