Feb. 25, 2005
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - After suffering three straight road losses, the Purdue men's tennis team returned home to its indoor courts at the Lafayette Sports Center and picked up a 6-1 victory over Western Michigan on Friday. The 73rd-ranked Boilermakers are now 2-3, while the Broncos are 7-4.
Purdue began the dual-match season with a home win against Butler at the LSC. But losses at N.C. State, North Carolina and Ball State followed.
Purdue head coach Tim Madden noticed a big difference in his team five days after the loss to the Cardinals in Muncie. He attributed the change to a hard week of practice.
"This was not an enjoyable week for anybody. We played challenge matches every day to determine who wanted to fight," Madden said. "The guys in our lineup today came out with some competitive fire, and it showed."
The fire began to burn in doubles. Seniors Sounak Chatterjee and Filip Koziell remained perfect this spring with an 8-5 win against Jose Orozco and Tim Bradshaw at No. 2. At No. 3, junior Colin Foster and sophomore Scott Warner teamed for an 8-6 win over Bryan Norville and Jeff French.
Chatterjee kept the flame alive in singles. He held on for a 6-0 7-6 (7) victory over Brady Crosby at No. 3. Purdue rattled off the next four victories in singles, with wins coming from, in order, junior Paul Rose (No. 1), Foster (No. 5), sophomore Jarred Leibner (No. 4), and sophomore Eric Hodgman (No. 6).
Bronco Jose Orozco spoiled the Boilermakers' bid for a sweep with a 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 victory over Koziell at No. 2.
Purdue's tear through the singles lineup did not surprise Chatterjee.
"Our focus all week was singles. That's the area where we needed to prove something," Chatterjee said. "We knew this would be a tough match, but we fought hard and stuck with it."
Chatterjee also said playing at home was beneficial.
"We talked before the match about how this is our house and how we have to take pride in protecting it," Chatterjee said. "Our home crowd helped us a lot."
The Boilermakers could use even more fans Saturday, when they take on No. 17 Vanderbilt. The Commodores are 7-0, but have not yet played outside of Nashville.
According to Chatterjee, Purdue will be facing Vanderbilt at just the right time.
"This win against Western Michigan could be the single-most important win for the season because of how we were sliding the last three matches," Chatterjee said. "This is a big confidence booster and momentum shifter."
Madden is looking forward to the match with the favored Commodores.
"Vanderbilt is one of the best teams in the country. They have great talent, great depth, and they're very good in both doubles and singles," Madden said. "This will be a real challenge and opportunity for us. If we compete like we did today, we'll have our chances."
The Vanderbilt match will be played at the Lafayette Sports Center on Feb. 26, beginning at 1 p.m.
#73 Purdue 6, Western Michigan 1
Singles
1. Paul Rose (P) def. Tommy Dennis (WM) 6-3, 4-6, 6-3
2. Jose Orozco (WM) def. Filip Koziell (P) 6-3, 4-6, 7-5
3. Sounak Chatterjee (P) def. Brady Crosby (WM) 6-0, 7-6 (7)
4. Jarred Leibner (P) def. Tim Bradshaw (WM) 6-4, 3-6, 6-2
5. Colin Foster (P) def. Alex Birchmeier (WM) 5-7, 6-0, 6-4 *
6. Eric Hodgman (P) def. RK Bacalla (WM) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
Doubles
1. Crosby/Dennis (WM) def. David Robinson/Rose (P) 8-5
2. Chatterjee/Koziell (P) def. Orozco/Bradshaw (WM) 8-5
3. Foster/Scott Warner (P) def. Bryan Norville/Jeff French (WM) 8-6
Order of singles finish: 3, 1, 5, 4, 6, 2
Order of doubles finish: 1, 2, 3
* Denotes match-clinching win.
Purdue: 2-3
Western Michigan: 7-4
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