April 8, 2001
Champaign, IL--The 15th ranked Illini men blanked Iowa 7-0 in today's match at Atkins Tennis Center. The Orange and Blue swept doubles and all six singles matches en route to their 51st consecutive conference victory.
In doubles, the No. 1 ranked dynamic duo of senior Graydon Oliver and freshman Amer Delic handed Iowa's Tyler Cleveland and Stuart Waters an 8-4 loss at No. 1. Freshman Michael Calkins and junior Mike Kosta posted an easy 9-7 score over Peter Mandic and Tom Buetikofer at No. 3. And freshman Philip Stolt and junior Jamal Parker rallied from a 3-6 deficit to come back and grab a 9-7 victory over Hunter Skogman and Pete Rose at No. 2.
"Coming into this match we knew that we were facing a much better Iowa team than last year," said Oliver. "We just stuck to our guns, our theme for this season has been to do the things that are going to help us in the end (Big Ten and NCAA championships) and we really had a chance to prepare well for this match by playing Texas A&M last Friday."
Delic breezed past Peter Mandic 6-1, 6-1 at No. 3 singles, and Stolt downed Stuart Waters 6-3, 6-0 at No. 2. Oliver had a tough match at No. 1 singles, where he faced the 2000 Big Ten Player of the Year in Iowa's Tyler Cleveland. Oliver netted Cleveland 7-6(5), 6-2 to clinch the match. Kosta defeated Tom Buetikofer 6-4, 6-3 at No. 4, and Calkins swatted Skogman 6-2, 6-3 at No. 5. Junior Nathan Zeder outlasted Eric Kozlowski 6-7(5), 6-2, (10-7) at the No. 6 spot.
"I was a little nervous because we just had a big win over Texas A&M last Friday," said Illinois Head Coach Craig Tiley. "I'm pretty happy with our play today. We've thrown all sorts of things at our guys, and they find a way to win. They don't like to lose in anything, and every time one of our players steps onto a court their opponent knows it's going to be a battle."
The Illini are now 15-5 on the year and 6-0 in the Big Ten. The Orange and Blue wrap up their home schedule with a pair of Big Ten matches next weekend. Illinois hosts Wisconsin on April 14 at noon, and Minnesota on April 15 at noon. Results can be followed on www.fightingillni.com.
SINGLES:
1. No. 20 Graydon Oliver (ILL) def. Tyler Cleveland (IA) 7-6(5), 6-2
2. No. 59 Phil Stolt (ILL) def. Stuart Waters (IA) 6-3, 6-0
3. Amer Delic (ILL) def. Peter Mandic (IA) 6-1, 6-1
4. Mike Kosta (ILL) def. Tom Buetikofer (IA) 6-4, 6-3
5. Michael Calkins (ILL) def. Hunter Skogman (IA) 6-2, 6-3
6. Nathan Zeder (ILL) def. Eric Kozlowski (IA) 6-7(5), 6-2, (10-7)
DOUBLES:
1. No. 1 Oliver/Delic (ILL) def. Cleveland/Waters (IA) 8-4
2. Stolt/Parker (ILL) def. Mandic/Buetikofer (IA) 9-7
3. Calkins/Kosta (ILL) def. Skogman/Rose (IA) 8-2
