2010 Big Ten Tennis Conference Championships day one

April 29, 2010
There was no shortage of excitement during day one of the Big Ten Tennis Conference Championships and I had a front row seat for the men's event at the University of Indiana.


The top teams had byes so there were only three matches today played under bright sun, warm temperatures and a steady wind.  First up was Northwestern University vs. Penn State and they kept everyone guessing until the end. 

It was doubles to Northwestern, but that lead didn't last for long as Eddie Bouchier tied it with a quick win at No. 1.  The next two points would belong to the Wildcats, with Andrew McCarthy's straight set victory at No. 4 (the last of the quick ones) and then Spencer Wolf (pictured right) would pull out a tiebreaker for the 3-1 Northwestern score.  It would be awhile before the next points, and they would both come in third set tiebreakers for Penn State.  The Nittany Lion celebration didn't last long, though, as Chris Jackman would pull it out over Taylor Cohen -- 7-6(4),6-7,6-3 -- for the Northwestern 4-3 win.

Things were just as tight between Iowa and Purdue.  After the Boilmakers took the doubles point, Reinoud Haal would make it 1-1 with his quick win at No. 4, and then the long ones would keep things going for hours. It was hard to keep up because matches were divided into three different spots in the outdoor tennis center (and there was no scoreboard), but it appeared that Iowa was up 3-1 at one point.

Purdue came back for the next two matches with wins from Paul Foley and Slavko Bijelica. It all came down to No. 1, which had split tiebreak sets. At 5-3 Iowa, Purdue's P.J. Rose (pictured left) cramped and a visit from the trainer could not get him back in the match enough to go further. It was a 6-3 final set to Marc Bruche and a win for the Hawkeyes.

Compared to the first two, there was little fanfare in the final match, with Indiana enoying a homecourt win over Michigan State.  Full results are available on the official website.  I will be back tomorrow for a live report and more photos.

At the women's championships at the University of Iowa, Wisconsin defeated Minnesota 4-2; Purdue beat Penn State 4-0; and Ohio State won over Michigan State, 4-0.  I will be at this site on Saturday and Sunday for a live report and more photos.

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