Wayne State University Athletics

Men's Tennis 2/9/2024 3:45:00 PM Matthew Jurek, Sports Information Graduate Assistant

Men's Tennis Continues Road Swing in Indianapolis

The Warriors will play #15-Washburn and #7-UIndy inside the UIndy Tennis Center this weekend.

DETROIT -- The Wayne State men's tennis program continues its road trip this weekend with a pair of matches inside the UIndy Tennis Center in Indianapolis, Ind. WSU will battle #15-Washburn in a neutral site affair on Saturday, February 10 at 3 p.m., before playing the host Greyhounds of UIndy (ranked seventh) on Sunday, February 11, at 10 a.m.

These will be the first two matches against ranked opponents this season for the Warriors, as well as the first two match-ups vs. Division II foes. Including this Saturday and Sunday, WSU will play a total of nine contests against seven different rivals ranked in the Top 25 of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's (ITA) Division II Men's Preseason Top 25 Coaches Poll. The other matches after this weekend with that criteria include Barry (February 16 at the ITA National Indoor Championship and March 12), Flagler (March 9 in Orlando, Fla.), Indianapolis a second time (March 3), Rollins (March 7), Embry-Riddle (March 10), and Ferris State (April 14). An eighth team in Tiffin received votes in the poll. The Warriors and Dragons will square off in Detroit on March 26.

LAST TIME OUT
The Green and Gold posted a pair of victories to open the season on a high note at 2-0. The Warriors handled NAIA member Lawrence Tech 7-0 on Thursday, February 1, before securing a close 4-3 triumph at Division I University of Toledo on Friday, February 2.

In doubles vs. LTU, the three Wayne State tandems posted victories of 6-1, 6-2, and 6-3 to claim the opening point of the contest. The hosts then registered all six singles points to complete the shutout performance against the Blue Devils. Freshman Benjamin Hill (Düren, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany) recorded his first collegiate singles win in a 6-2, 6-3 decision vs. Redwane Bouhajda at the fifth flight.

The next day, WSU downed the defending MAC Tournament Champion Rockets for the second time in the past three season via a 4-3 win. The battle was close throughout and came down to the final unfinished match.

The Warriors notched victories in two of the three doubles matches, with both ending 6-3. Cedric Drenth (Sulzbach, Germany) and Daniel Grey (Wiesbaden, Germany) handled business at the No. 1 spot, while Luke Laws (Sunderland, England) and Dom Spicer (London, England) claimed the triumph at the second position.

Drenth defeated Marko Galic 6-2, 6-2 at the second singles spot, while Laws triumphed 7-6 (7-2), 6-2 over Matias Olivero at the fifth flight. That, combined with three wins from Toledo, set up a 3-3 tie with the No. 6 spot left to finish. WSU's fate hinged on the freshman Hill in his second collegiate singles match, and the rookie came through for the squad. Despite falling in the opening set 6-2 against Poonthong Komolpisut, Hill rallied in a tiebreaker (7-2) to claim the second set, and finished the job with a 6-4 final set win to send Wayne State home with the win.

VS. WASHBURN (2/10)
#15-Washburn is 1-0 entering the weekend following a 7-0 shutout of Missouri-St. Louis on Saturday, February 3. The Ichabods will play Indianapolis this afternoon (February 9), before playing WSU on the 10th.

These two squads met for the first time ever in the NCAA Tournament Round of 16 a season ago in Orlando, Fla. The Warriors advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals with a 4-2 victory in that match. Last season, WU finished 17-8 and won the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Conference (MIAA) Championship Tournament.

The Ichabods have numerous players regionally and nationally ranked via the ITA. In singles, they include Sebastian Pjontek (10th in Division II and first in the Central Region), Santiago Rendon (11/2), Pavlos Parson (30/5), Tim Hammes (-/8), Tommaso Cecchetti (-/13), and Matthew Earle (-/16). Hammes and Rendon entered the new campaign as the top-ranked doubles team in the country, while Pjontek and Daniel Bird were ranked sixth in the Central.

Washburn is coached by Kirby Ronning in his fourth season. He has led the Ichabods to a 46-19 (.708) overall record. Ronning is assisted by Casie Curry, Sofia Smagina, Kurt Reid, and Raul-Alin Dicu.

AT INDIANAPOLIS (2/11)
The seventh-ranked Indianapolis Greyhounds enter Saturday's contest against WU with a 2-0 record after wins over GLIAC opponents in Grand Valley State (5-2) and Ferris State (6-1) on February 3 and February 4.

UIndy has won the last four matches between the two programs, all within Indiana. That includes a 7-0 victory for the Greyhounds last season on March 4, 2023. The Warriors had claimed five of the six matches prior to that span between February 29, 2004, and March 30, 2012 (WSU's last win over Indianapolis, 8-1).

Indianapolis has two singles players and one doubles team regionally ranked. Tom Zeuch (second) and Matthieu Derache (third) are featured prominently within the Midwest Region, while Zeuch and partner Louis Picaud are eighth in the region for doubles.

The Greyhounds are coached by Malik Tabet in his 12th season at the helm of the program. Tabet has led Indianapolis to a 185-45 (.804) overall record and a 53-3 (.946) ledger in the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC). Indianapolis has not lost in the GLVC since 2012-13, which was Tabet's first season. He is assisted by Nastassia Chamoun, Carlos Thireau Cuco, and Milan Jankovic.

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

Cedric Drenth: 6' 2"; Junior

Daniel Grey: 6' 0"; Senior

Benjamin Hill: 6' 0"; Freshman

Luke Laws: 5' 10"; Graduate Student

Dom Spicer: 5' 11"; Graduate Student

Players Mentioned

Cedric Drenth
: 6' 2"; Junior

Daniel Grey
: 6' 0"; Senior

Benjamin Hill
: 6' 0"; Freshman

Luke Laws
: 5' 10"; Graduate Student

Dom Spicer
: 5' 11"; Graduate Student