Friday, April 1
Evanston, IL
6 PM
Michigan State University
at
Northwestern
Spartans set for Road Showdown with Northwestern, Illinois
3/31/2022 12:24:00 PM | Men's Tennis
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State men's tennis is headed to Illinois this weekend for a pair of conference matches against rival teams Northwestern and Illinois. The Spartans start out with a match against the Wildcats on Friday, April 1 at 7 p.m. ET, followed by a match against Illinois on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
Both squads are ranked, with Northwestern (12-6) sitting at No. 25 and Illinois (7-10) ranked No. 55. The Spartans are 13-7 overall with an 0-2 mark in Big Ten matches.
LAST TIME OUT
Michigan State kicked off conference play last weekend with a match against Wisconsin on Friday, March 25 before taking on Nebraska on Sunday. Both matches were played on MSU's home turf. Wisconsin took home the win with a 5-2 victory, but both matches proved to be a battle, with Sunday's meeting with Nebraska ending with a narrow 4-3 victory for the Huskers.
Senior Jack Winkler went 2-0 on the weekend in singles action, winning both his matches played on the No. 1 court. On Friday, he defeated Wisconsin's Jared Pratt, 6-1, 6-3. His match on Sunday against Nebraska's Gabriel Huber was a lengthy fight, with Winkler winning the tiebreaker decision set by a 14-12 margin to secure his victory. Winkler is now 11-11 in singles action with a 7-5 record in matches played on the top court.
Freshman Max Sheldon improved to 17-8 in singles play with a win at No. 2 on Sunday, defeating Calvin Mueller of Nebraska. After going up 6-1 in the first set, Sheldon fell 6-4 in the second to force a tiebreaker. The first-year Spartan was victorious with a 6-1 win in the tiebreaker.
Luke Baylis and Nick Williams also had wins on the weekend. At No. 3 singles on Friday, Baylis won over his Badger opponent Gabriel Huber. Baylis won the first set 7-5 before Huber evened things up with a 6-3 win in the second set. Baylis came out on top after winning 11-9 in the tiebreaker round. Williams improved his singles record when he defeated William Gleason of Nebraska on Sunday.
COACH ORLANDO'S THOUGHTS
"The weekend was certainly a gut check for us with two setbacks that will ultimately make us stronger and better. It's a journey and part of the process in the development of our program and team. We are hungry and excited to respond in this weekend's opportunities."
SERIES HISTORY VS NORTHWESTERN AND ILLINOIS
Michigan State has a lengthy history with both teams in this weekend's slate. The Spartans are 25-56 all-time against the Wildcats, with a 10-36 mark in matches played in Evanston. In matches with Illinois MSU is 29-58 overall and 14-34 on the road. The team will look to pull off upset wins against both teams, having lost 7-0 to Northwestern and Illinois in March of 2021.
UP NEXT
The Spartans are back home next weekend for another pair of Big Ten matches. On Friday, April 8 they will face Indiana at 3 p.m., followed by a match with Purdue on Sunday at noon. More details and location will be updated at msuspartans.com dependant on weather.
Both squads are ranked, with Northwestern (12-6) sitting at No. 25 and Illinois (7-10) ranked No. 55. The Spartans are 13-7 overall with an 0-2 mark in Big Ten matches.
LAST TIME OUT
Michigan State kicked off conference play last weekend with a match against Wisconsin on Friday, March 25 before taking on Nebraska on Sunday. Both matches were played on MSU's home turf. Wisconsin took home the win with a 5-2 victory, but both matches proved to be a battle, with Sunday's meeting with Nebraska ending with a narrow 4-3 victory for the Huskers.
Senior Jack Winkler went 2-0 on the weekend in singles action, winning both his matches played on the No. 1 court. On Friday, he defeated Wisconsin's Jared Pratt, 6-1, 6-3. His match on Sunday against Nebraska's Gabriel Huber was a lengthy fight, with Winkler winning the tiebreaker decision set by a 14-12 margin to secure his victory. Winkler is now 11-11 in singles action with a 7-5 record in matches played on the top court.
Freshman Max Sheldon improved to 17-8 in singles play with a win at No. 2 on Sunday, defeating Calvin Mueller of Nebraska. After going up 6-1 in the first set, Sheldon fell 6-4 in the second to force a tiebreaker. The first-year Spartan was victorious with a 6-1 win in the tiebreaker.
Luke Baylis and Nick Williams also had wins on the weekend. At No. 3 singles on Friday, Baylis won over his Badger opponent Gabriel Huber. Baylis won the first set 7-5 before Huber evened things up with a 6-3 win in the second set. Baylis came out on top after winning 11-9 in the tiebreaker round. Williams improved his singles record when he defeated William Gleason of Nebraska on Sunday.
COACH ORLANDO'S THOUGHTS
"The weekend was certainly a gut check for us with two setbacks that will ultimately make us stronger and better. It's a journey and part of the process in the development of our program and team. We are hungry and excited to respond in this weekend's opportunities."
SERIES HISTORY VS NORTHWESTERN AND ILLINOIS
Michigan State has a lengthy history with both teams in this weekend's slate. The Spartans are 25-56 all-time against the Wildcats, with a 10-36 mark in matches played in Evanston. In matches with Illinois MSU is 29-58 overall and 14-34 on the road. The team will look to pull off upset wins against both teams, having lost 7-0 to Northwestern and Illinois in March of 2021.
UP NEXT
The Spartans are back home next weekend for another pair of Big Ten matches. On Friday, April 8 they will face Indiana at 3 p.m., followed by a match with Purdue on Sunday at noon. More details and location will be updated at msuspartans.com dependant on weather.
Players Mentioned
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