With only one regular season match left in what has turned out to be a tough season, the Wisconsin men's tennis team (2-7 Big Ten, 8-12 overall) will get no relief as they face No. 24 Ohio State (7-1 Big Ten, 16-6 overall) today at Nielsen Tennis Stadium. In a recent six-game stretch where the Badgers faced five ranked opponents, the team played well but was often overpowered by the more experienced and talented competition.
After a slight reprieve in their grueling schedule, in which they handled Purdue 4-3, the team had to gear up to face Illinois, the No. 4 team in the country. Despite dropping the match 6-1, head coach Pat Klingelhoets was pleased with the team's performance last weekend.
\We played a good match against Purdue on Saturday. They're actually a very good team, and we got that one, and I thought we played real solid against Illinois,"" he said. ""I thought we competed pretty darn good, so the guys all feel like it was a good weekend. We got the one win and gave Illinois a battle.""
In the match against Illinois, senior Alex Kasarov played a hard-fought match against the nation's No. 5 ranked singles player, junior Ryler DeHeart, who boasts an impressive 36-8 record this year.
Klingelhoets said he has been encouraged by Kasarov's play of late, but that he needs to not let his confidence dip during some matches and develop a killer instinct versus elite opponents such as DeHeart.
""Alex played two good matches,"" Klingelhoets said. ""Unfortunately, he didn't get either one of them. He continues to play well; he's hitting the ball really good. Sometimes in that crucial time with those really tough players he has to have the confidence to fight through that.""
While Kasarov was far from satisfied with his performance, he knew he could take away some good things from it and would like another crack at the Illinois junior.
""You know, it was a good experience for me looking forward to the Big Ten Tournament,"" Kasarov said. ""Hopefully we can meet again.""
A good first step towards a successful rematch with DeHeart would be a win against Ohio State star Devin Mullings. The reigning Big Ten tennis Athlete of the Week has won his last 13 matches and is one of the hottest players in the conference.
""He's a really steady player,"" Klingelhoets said of the OSU sophomore. ""He just doesn't make any mistakes at all. Alex is going to have to play a really good, smart match to have a shot at him.""
With Ohio State currently playing its best tennis of the season, the Badgers will have to have a total team effort to close out the regular season with a win.
""We're going to need to play really solid up and down the line, but I do think we are playing well enough to have a shot at them,"" Klingelhoets said. ""We just have to get a good effort out of everybody.""
""We need six guys to step on the court ready to play, in singles and in doubles, and that's the only way we are going to have a chance,"" Kasarov said. ""Everyone has got to be willing to compete and have a lot of energy.\
