EVANSTON, Ill.- Purdue's Big Ten Tournament run came to an end Thursday following a 3-4 decision against No. 9 Penn State.
The Boilers got out to an early lead with wins at doubles No. 1 and 2. Stefan Simeunovic/Henrik Villanger picked up their fourth win as a pair while Juan David Velasquez/Daniel Labrador played just their third match as a team.
Soham Purohit and Velasquez stacked back-to-back wins to give Purdue a 3-1 lead over the Nittany Lions. Purohit snatched another straight set win, his ninth of the season and third against Big Ten opponents.
Velasquez completed a three-set thriller after going down 4-6 in the opening set. He won 12 of the next 15 games to reverse sweep Ari Cotoulas. It was his second win over a Penn State player this season.
The Nittany Lions mounted a late singles rally to take points at No. 4, 5 and 1. After a super tiebreak win in the second set, Henrik Villanger was defeated 3-6 in the clinching match at No. 3.
#8 PURDUE (7-16, 2-7) - 3, #9 PENN STATE (6-19, 1-8) - 4
SINGLES
1. No. 83 Miko Eala (PSU) def. Stefan Simeunovic (PUR)- 6-3, 7-6(5)
2. Soham Purohit (PUR) def. Stefan Simeunovic (PSU)- 6-2, 6-3
3. Nolan Ranger (PSU) def. Henrik Villanger (PUR)- 7-6(0), 6-7(3), 6-3
4. Juan David Velasquez (PUR) def. Ari Cotoulas (PSU)- 4-6, 6-1, 6-2
5. Jack Martuccio (PSU) def. Daniel Labrador (PUR)- 7-5, 6-4
6. Alexander Sterin (PSU) def. Mujtaba Ali-Khan (PUR)- 6-2, 6-4
DOUBLES
1. Juan David Velasquez/Daniel Labrador (PUR) def. Stefan Simeunovic/Jack Martuccio (PSU)- 6-4
2. Stefan Simeunovic/Henrik Villanger (PUR) def. Ari Cotoulas/Alexander Sterin (PSU)- 6-3
3. Miko Eala/Nolan Ranger (PSU) vs. Soham Purohit/Mujtaba Ali-Khan (PUR)- 5-3 (Unfinished)
ORDER OF FINISH
Singles- 2, 6, 4, 5, 1, 3
Doubles- 2, 1, 3 (Unfinished)
Late Singles Rally Ends Purdue's Tournament Run
Purdue's Big Ten Tournament run came to an end Thursday following a 3-4 decision against No. 9 Penn State.