April 4, 1999
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The 47th-ranked Purdue men's tennis team upset Big Ten opponent Minnesota, by a final score of 4-3 on April 4 at the Varsity Tennis Courts in West Lafayette, Ind. The Boilers managed to take the match, despite losing only their second doubles point of the year. With the win, Purdue improves to 12-2 overall and a perfect 4-0 in the league, while Minnesota, ranked 36th in the latest ITA rankings, falls to 8-9 and 3-2 in the Big Ten.
"We tend to count on the doubles point a great deal," Purdue coach Tim Madden said. "This was a good test for us to see if we could build momentum after losing the doubles point."
In doubles action, the 36th-ranked Golden Gophers took the doubles point behind wins at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles. The only other time this season that the Boilers did not claim the doubles point was in the first match of the season against the Demon Deacons of Wake Forest. The duo of Derek Myers and Laith Al-Agba defeated the Golden Gophers' team of Michalowski and Chicoine, 8-5. With the victory in the No.1 spot, the Purdue tandem improve to 12-3 overall and a perfect 4-0 in the conference.
In singles action, the Boilers came out strong and won four of the six singles matches to claim the match. After senior Derek Myers lost a hard fought match against the Golden Gophers' Tom Chicoine, 6-7, 6-4, 6-2, the Old Gold and Black battled back with wins in the No. 2 through No. 4 spots. Senior Jamie Gordon began the attack with a win over Minnesota's Tyson Parry, 6-2, 4-1 (ret.). Sophomore Jason Marshall followed Gordon's performance with a win at the No. 3 position. Marshall defeated the Gophers' Adam Selkirk, 7-5, 6-4. At the No. 4 position, senior Cris James moved to 13-6 on the season and 3-0 at the No. 4 spot. James defeated Martin Michalowksi of the Golden Gophers 6-1, 6-2. James returned to the lineup for the first time in three matches after reaggravating a shoulder injury. The Boilers rounded out singles action with an important win by freshman Derek Miller. Miller defeated Minnesota's Jorge Duenas, 6-2, 6-4, to win the match in dramatic fashion.
"Everything seems to be in place now," Madden said. "We played hard start to finish today. This was one of our biggest wins of the season, and it sets up what should be a great match with Notre Dame tomorrow."
The Boilers will be in action at home on Monday, April 5, as they take on Notre Dame at 2 p.m. Adding a little light to the fire in tomorrow's match will be the fact that Derek Miller's brother Trent is a junior on the Fighting Irish, and that the Irish hold an eight-match winning streak over the Boilers dating back to the 1988-89 season.
FINAL SCORE: PURDUE 4, MINNESOTA 3
SINGLES
1. Tom Chicoine (MN) d. Derek Myers (PU) 6-7, 6-4, 6-2
2. Jamie Gordon (PU) d. Tyson Parry (MN) 6-2, 4-1 (Ret.)
3. Jason Marshall (PU) d. Adam Selkirk (MN) 7-5, 6-4
4. Cris James (PU) d. Martin Michalowski (MN) 6-1, 6-2
5. Thomas Haug (MN) d. Cade Lutz (PU) 6-2, 5-7, 6-3
6. Derek Miller (PU) d. Jorge Duenas (MN) 6-2, 6-4
DOUBLES
1. Myers/Al-Agba (PU) d. Michalowski/Chicoine (MN) 8-5
2. Selkirk/Parry (MN) d. Gordon/Swan (PU) 9-8
3. Haug/Davies (MN) d. Marshall/Lutz (PU) 8-3