Box Score
MADISON, Wisc. – Fighting Illini men's tennis defeated the Wisconsin Badgers, 4-2 on Sunday afternoon. Illinois is now 10-9 overall this season and 3-2 in Big Ten play.
The Orange and Blue clinched the doubles point for an early advantage in Madison. Redshirt-senior Alex Jesse and freshman Aleks Kovacevic defeated Carranza and Dodridge, 6-3 at the No. 1 position. Freshmen Gui Gomes and Zeke Clark clinched the point for Illinois with a 7-5 win on court three against O'Hoisin and Zordani. Wisconsin had not lost a doubles point in their first 15 matches of the season.
In singles action, freshman Noe Khlif was the first off the court with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Daniel Soyfer on court six. Wisconsin tied the contest with two match victories on courts four and five. Gomes put the Illini back on top with a win on court two. The freshman used a tiebreak and three sets to take the match from Josef Dodridge, 7-6(3), 3-6, 6-1.
Junior Aleks Vukic clinched the Illinois win on court one after a hard-fought contest against Lamar Remy. The Sydney, Australia native took the first set, 7-5 and Remy responded with a 6-3 win in the second. Down, 5-3 in the third, Vukic came back to force a tiebreaker for the win. The junior took the tiebreak, 7-2 to seal the Illinois victory. Vukic extends his singles winning streak to 13 matches with the win.
Up next, Illinois returns to the Atkins Tennis Center for a weekend series against Iowa and Nebraska. Both matches begin at 12 p.m. CT.
Head Coach Brad Dancer's Thoughts
"Spring break was tough on our squad. We knew we were capable of performing better. Then to have the situation on Friday night makes you wonder. I trust our guys. I believed in their ability to be resilient. On a day when we had numerous weather stoppages, it was necessary to just focus. It was definitely a day where the freshmen responded. Kova [Aleks Kovacevic] hung tough and turned his match and I think that was the tipping point.
Vuki was Vuki. Tons of credit to [Remy] Lamar for taking Vuki out of his game and then just really proud of Aleks [Vukic] for the toughness he showed down the stretch. I think our guys played with the pressure of the standard of the program instead of maybe making this team their own. We have the student-athletes to have a special season."
Final Results
Illinois 4, Wisconsin 2
Doubles-Order of Finish: 1, 2, 3*
- Jesse/Kovacevic (Illinois) def. Carranza/Dodridge (Wisconsin) 6-3
- Remy/Colton (Wisconsin) def. Budic/Vukic (Illinois) 7-5
- Clark/Gomes (Illinois) def. O'Hoisin/Zordani (Wisconsin) 7-5
Singles-Order of Finish: 6, 4, 5, 2, 1*
- #20 Aleks Vukic (Illinois) def. Lamar Remy (Wisconsin) 7-5, 3-6, 7-6(2)
- Gui Gomes (Illinois) def. Josef Dodridge (Wisconsin) 7-6(3), 3-6, 6-1
- Aleks Kovacevic (Illinois) vs. Osgar O'Hoisin (Wisconsin) 6-7(8), 7-6, 4-3, unf.
- Chema Carranza (Wisconsin) def. Julian Childers (Illinois) 6-0, 2-6, 6-2
- Chase Colton (Wisconsin) def. Zeke Clark (Illinois) 6-3, 7-5
- Noe Khlif (Illinois) def. Daniel Soyfer (Wisconsin) 6-2, 6-2
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