Indiana men’s tennis was at home this weekend to play its final regular season home matches. Indiana took on No. 4 Michigan on Saturday and No. 69 Michigan State on Sunday. The Hoosiers lost 4-0 to the Wolverines and 4-3 to the Spartans.
The first match of the weekend was played outdoors on a beautiful 80-degree Bloomington afternoon. The Wolverines came out strong in doubles play, winning at No. 1 and No. 3 to take the doubles point.
“They’re a top 10 team in the country for a reason,” head coach Jeremy Wurtzman said after the match. “They’re an extremely talented team.”
In singles play, Michigan showed why it is one of the top teams in the country. The Wolverines took wins at No. 2, No. 5 and No. 6 singles to clinch a 4-0 win over the Hoosiers. The other three singles matches went unfinished.
Indiana’s second match of the weekend came against Michigan State and was played inside the IU Tennis Center due to inclement weather in the Bloomington area. The match against the Spartans was also Senior Day for the Hoosiers.
“We knew they were going to be a tough test,” Wurtzman said. “We knew we were going to have to play well to have a chance to win.”
For the second time on the weekend, the Hoosiers dropped the doubles point. The Spartans won at No. 1 and No. 3 doubles and took a quick 1-0 lead.
Singles play came down to the very end. Michigan State got off to a hot start, winning at No. 1 and No. 5 singles to take a 3-0 lead over Indiana. However, the Hoosiers fought back.
“Our resilience was great,” Wurtzman said. “I’m proud of the fight and the way the team competed.”
Junior Ilya Tiraspolsky and freshman Ekansh Kumar nabbed wins for the Hoosiers at No. 4 and No. 6 singles. Senior Luka Vukovic then followed with a win at No. 3 singles, 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 to tie the match at 3-3 with just one match left.
“It’s a nice feeling playing one of the last matches to finish,” Vukovic said after the match. “It’s an even better feeling when you win.”
With the match tied 3-3, freshman Sam Landau led 4-2 in the final set but could not hang on, dropping the match 6-4, 4-6, 4-6. With that, Michigan State clinched the 4-3 win.
“(Sam) hasn’t had many losses,” Wurtzman said. “He’s cruised through most of the season, but unfortunately the other guy played really well today.”
Senior Day festivities followed the match as fifth-year seniors Patrick Fletchall and Mac Rogers were honored along with senior Luka Vukovic for the time they spent with the Hoosiers.
“It’s meant everything,” Vukovic said of his time at Indiana. “I guess everything good has to come to an end at some point.”
With the loss, the Hoosiers drop to 12-12 on the year and 1-6 in Big Ten play. Indiana closes out the regular season with road matches next weekend against Penn State and Ohio State.
