URBANA, Ill. – No. 20 Illinois improved to 2-0 in Big Ten play with a dominant 7-0 sweep against Wisconsin on Sunday afternoon at Atkins Tennis Center.
Improving to 5-0 on their home courts this season, the Fighting Illini took the doubles point before winning all six singles matches in straight sets against the Badgers.
"Any time you get to 2-0 in the conference, I'll always be thrilled with that start," said head coach Brad Dancer. "It was an interesting week for us with battling through some things with people being sick, but the bottom line is we're through one weekend of the season and we're 2-0 in the Big Ten. I think our team has a tremendous culture at the moment. They believe in each other. They play for each other. There's a closeness to them and, as a coach, that's fun to watch. We know for certain that we can still get better and improve, and we probably need to be doing that.Â
"I love the culture on this team. The guys on this team are awesome, and now it's up to the coaches to put us in a better spot where we continue to perform at a higher level as we move into next weekend. I'm looking forward to the challenges ahead."
For the second consecutive match, the Orange and Blue won the doubles point and entered singles play with a 1-0 advantage. Mathis Debru and Jeremy Zhang were the first to finish, posting a victory over Wisconsin's Edouard Aubert/Matthew Fullerton at No. 3 doubles. The Illini duo broke for the first time in the fifth game before battling back from an 0-40 hole to hold in the sixth game to maintain their lead. Debru/Zhang broke again in the seventh game before serving out the match, 6-2.
After the Badgers took the match on Court 1, the doubles point came down to No. 2 between William Mroz/Zach Viiala and Wisconsin's Michael Minasyan/Patrik Meszaros. Mroz/Viiala broke in the second game, though the Badger duo battled back to even the match at 4-4. With the sides going into a tiebreaker with the score knotted at 6-6, the Illini tandem tallied the first three points before going ahead, 6-2. Though Wisconsin won the next three points, Mroz/Viiala sealed the triumph to claim their match, 7-6(5), and secure the doubles point for the home side.
Debru carried his momentum into singles play, winning his match against Sachiv Kumar in straight sets. With the first frame tied at four games apiece, Debru broke in the ninth game and held serve in the 10th to take a one-set lead. Breaking in both the first and third games, Debru was never broken and cruised to a 6-4, 6-2 triumph to give the Illini a 2-0 advantage.
Viiala's match on Court 5 against Edouard Aubert finished less than 60 seconds later. Going up two breaks and jumping out to a 5-2 edge in the opening set, Viiala fended off a late Badger break with his third break of the first frame to take the 6-3 decision. The Australia native held a 5-4 edge in the second set and closed out his match with a break in the 10th and final game en route to a 6-3, 6-4 victory.
Overcoming an early break against Michael Minasyan at No. 1 singles, Kenta Miyoshi fought back from a 15-40 deficit in the fifth game, which shifted the momentum into the Illini junior's favor. Miyoshi won the next 11 games, sealing his match with an ace, 6-3, 6-0, and clinching Illinois' dual victory.Â
Mroz was the next to finish, securing a straight-set win of his own. Against Wisconsin's Patrik Meszaros on Court 2, Mroz broke in the first game, though the Badger freshman bagged a break of his own in the sixth game to level the set. Ultimately going to a tiebreaker, Mroz won the first four points and secured the opening set, 7-6(1). Breaks in the fourth and sixth games proved to be the difference for Mroz in the second frame, with the Illini redshirt junior recording a 6-1 margin in the second set to take the triumph.
At No. 3 singles, Tyler Bowers fought back from being broken for the first time in the ninth game, winning the next three games and breaking twice to claim the opening frame. Broken in the first game of the second set, Bowers broke back in the 10th game and eventually forced a tiebreak. Winning the first five points of the tiebreaker, the Illinois native closed out his triumph against Tomas Zlatohlavek with the fifth straight-set singles win of the afternoon, 7-5, 7-6(2).Â
Jeremy Zhang closed out the sweep on Court 4 against Matthew Fullerton. Despite getting broken late while looking to serve out the opening set, Zhang took a 5-1 lead in the tiebreaker and ultimately secured the 7-6(3) win in the frame. With the sides knotted at four games apiece, Zhang held serve in the ninth game before breaking in the 10th to clinch his straight-set victory and conclude the Illini's dominant afternoon.
Results: No. 20 Illinois 7, Wisconsin 0
Doubles
No. 1: Tomas Zlatohlavek/Oliver Olsson (Wisconsin) def. Tyler Bowers/Kenta Miyoshi (Illinois), 7-6(5)
No. 2: William Mroz/Zach Viiala (Illinois) def. Michael Minasyan/Patrik Meszaros (Wisconsin), 7-6(5)
No. 3: Mathis Debru/Jeremy Zhang (Illinois) def. Edouard Aubert/Matthew Fullerton (Wisconsin), 6-2
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2
Singles
No. 1: No. 12 Kenta Miyoshi (Illinois) def. Michael Minasyan (Wisconsin), 6-3, 6-0
No. 2: No. 48 William Mroz (Illinois) def. Patrik Meszaros (Wisconsin), 7-6(1), 6-1
No. 3: Tyler Bowers (Illinois) def. Tomas Zlatohlavek (Wisconsin), 7-5, 7-6(2)
No. 4: Jeremy Zhang (Illinois) def. Matthew Fullerton (Wisconsin), 7-6(3), 6-4
No. 5: Zach Viiala (Illinois) def. Edouard Aubert (Wisconsin), 6-3, 6-4
No. 6: Mathis Debru (Illinois) def. Sachiv Kumar (Wisconsin), 6-4, 6-2
Order of finish: 6, 5, 1, 2, 3, 4
Next Up
No. 20 Illinois heads east to the Hoosier State for two Big Ten road matches next weekend, taking on Purdue on Friday at 4 p.m. CT and Indiana on Sunday at 1 p.m. CT away from home.
