April 12, 2012

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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The 23rd-ranked University of Illinois men's tennis team (12-4, 6-1 Big Ten) will hit the road this week to take on No. 7 Kentucky on Thursday at 1 p.m., No. 2 Ohio State on Friday at 5 p.m. and Penn State on Sunday at 10 a.m. The Illini are 3-3 against top-25 opponents this season and are 0-1 with a loss to then-No. 5 Duke against teams in the top 10.

FOR STARTERS
Illinois leads the all-time series against Kentucky, 13-12, and has faced the Wildcats 10 times in the past seven seasons, holding a 7-3 lead in that span. Of the last nine matches, six were 4-3 decisions, including the last four, while two were 7-0 shutouts by the Illini.

The Orange and Blue hold a 56-39-1 advantage over Ohio State all-time but have lost their last nine meetings dating back to 2008. Last season, the Illini lost a pair of shutouts to the Buckeyes, dropping a 7-0 decision at home during the regular season and a 4-0 decision in the semifinal round of the 2011 Big Ten Tournament.

The Illini boast a 25-3 all-time record against Penn State and have won 21 straight over the Nittany Lions since the 1995-96 season, including a 7-0 shutout last year.

CAMPBELL/ITA NATIONAL RANKINGS
The Orange and Blue checked in at No. 23 in the latest national team rankings, which were released April 10. Individually, senior Dennis Nevolo came in at No. 5, followed by fellow senior Roy Kalmanovich at No. 38. Together, they jumped 20 spots to No. 25 in doubles, while Nevolo also checked in at No. 75 with freshman Farris Gosea.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Kentucky is 22-4 this season with a perfect 10-0 mark in the SEC. The Wildcats clinched a share of the SEC title last weekend with a 6-1 win over No. 10 Mississippi State and a 5-2 victory over No. 14 Ole Miss. The squad is 8-3 against top-25 teams this season and is 12-1 at home. The Wildcat roster features six nationally ranked singles players and two ranked doubles teams, including No. 3 Eric Quigley, No. 15 Alex Musialek, No. 22 Anthony Rossi, No. 67 Tom Jomby, No. 104 Alejandro Gomez, No. 110 Panav Jha, No. 11 duo Jha and Quigley and No. 55 tandem Rossi and Musialek.

Ohio State is 25-2 overall and 7-0 in the Big Ten. The team's only losses came at the hands of No. 1 USC and No. 4 Georgia. The Buckeyes have won their last 86 Big Ten contests and boast a school-record 143-match winning streak at home dating back to the 2002-03 season. The squad is 15-0 at home this year. The roster is highlighted by six ranked singles players and four ranked doubles pairings, including No. 7 Blaz Rola, No. 13 Chase Buchanan, No. 58 Peter Kobelt, No. 79 Devin McCarthy, No. 118 Connor Smith and No. 125 Nelson Vick, along with duos No. 1 Buchanan and Rola, No. 23 McCarthy and Van Engelen, No. 40 Buchanan and Kobelt and No. 83 Rola and Smith.

Penn State is 11-9 overall and 1-6 in the Big Ten heading into the weekend but will face Northwestern on Friday before squaring off with the Illini on Sunday. The Nittany Lions have lost 7 of their last 9 outings, and their only conference win was a 6-1 decision over Iowa. The squad includes one ranked doubles team, No. 27 Jason Lee and Russel Bader.

LAST TIME OUT
The then-18th-ranked Fighting Illini men's tennis team bounced back after Friday's 4-3 loss to Michigan to capture a 6-1 win over Michigan State Saturday afternoon at Khan Outdoor Tennis Complex. Seniors Dennis Nevolo and Roy Kalmanovich and junior Stephen Hoh led the way with wins in both singles and doubles play.

The Illini took an early 1-0 lead, capturing the doubles point with wins at Nos. 1 and 3. No. 45 duo Nevolo and Kalmanovich got the Orange and Blue off to a strong start with an 8-5 win over No. 57 pairing Aaron Pfister and Drew Lied at the top spot. The Illini dropped their match on Court 2 before climbing back to win on Court 3, as Hoh and freshman Farris Gosea downed Doug Zade and Gijs Linders, 8-4.

The Orange and Blue carried that momentum into singles play, winning the first five completed matches in straight sets. Fourth-ranked Nevolo led off with a quick 6-0, 6-1 win over Pfister at the No. 1 spot, followed by freshman Tim Kopinski's convincing 6-2, 6-2 victory over Austin Brooks on Court 5.

No. 31 Roy Kalmanovich sealed the Orange and Blue victory with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Ron Hulewicz at the No. 2 spot, marking his second singles win of the weekend. Meanwhile, Hoh added a 6-2, 6-1 win over Lied at No. 4, and junior Bruno Abdelnour won a 6-3, 6-4 decision over Denis Bogatov at No. 3 to round out the Illini scoring for the day.

UP NEXT
The Orange and Blue will wrap up the regular season next weekend, taking on the Hoosiers on Friday, April 20 at 2 p.m. in Bloomington, Ind., before returning home for a Senior Day clash with Purdue on Sunday, April 22 at Noon at Khan Outdoor Tennis Complex.