MADISON, Wis. — The Wisconsin men's tennis team battled until the end on Sunday before ultimately falling 4-3 in its dual match against rival Minnesota at Nielsen Tennis Stadium.
The Badgers (4-11, 4-10 Big Ten) fought hard to win the doubles point over the No. 48-ranked Golden Gophers. The German duo of
Lenard Soha and
Jesper Freimuth locked in their sixth straight win with a 6-4 victory at the second position. The No. 1 duo of
Jared Pratt and
Robin Parts then clinched the doubles point for Wisconsin with their 6-4 win over the Gophers' Jackson Allen and Sebastian Vile.
Singles play was a back-and-forth race that ultimately came down to a third-set tiebreaker between Pratt and Vlad Lobak where Lobak would ultimately clinch the match for Minnesota.
Two Badgers rallied back to win their matches and put the Gophers in a tight spot after taking the initial 2-1 lead.
Mihailo Popovic locked in straight-sets wins over Bodin Zarkovic at No. 5 singles and Parts put Wisconsin temporarily in the lead after he made a comeback in the second set to ultimately win his match, 2-6, 6-4, 6-3.
Straight from the Courts
Head coach
Danny Westerman: "Just an amazing college tennis match. Both teams deserved to win and we showed ourselves what we are capable of. It's great to see us still getting better and playing some of our best tennis at the end of the season."
Up Next
The Badgers will close out the regular season next weekend at Nielsen, hosting Iowa on Friday, April 16, and Nebraska on Sunday, April 18.
#48 Minnesota 4, Wisconsin 3
Doubles Results
1.
Jared Pratt/
Robin Parts (WIS) def. Jackson Allen/Sebastian Vile (MINN) 6-4
2.
Lenard Soha/
Jesper Freimuth (WIS) def. Vlad Lobak/Bodin Zarkovic (MINN) 6-4
3.
Tim Dzhurinskiy/
Mihailo Popovic (WIS) vs. Siim Troost/Daniel Martin (MINN) 4-5, unfinished
Singles Results
1. Jackson Allen (MINN) def.
Lenard Soha (WIS) 7-5, 6-3
2. Vlad Lobak (MINN) def.
Jared Pratt (WIS) 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (8-6)
3.
Robin Parts (WIS) def. Sebastian Vile (MINN) 2-6, 6-4, 6-3
4. Siim Troost (MINN) def.
Jesper Freimuth (WIS) 6-3, 4-6, 6-4
5.
Mihailo Popovic (WIS) def. Bodin Zarkovic (MINN) 6-4, 7-5
6. Daniel Martin (MINN) def.
Robert Krill (WIS) 6-2, 6-3
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (6,1,5,3,4,2)
