Wednesday, 04/25/2012

With its regular season completed, the ninth-seeded Nebraska men’s tennis team is set to begin the Big Ten Tournament as it will face off against the eight-seeded Wisconsin Badgers on Thursday, April 26 at 9:30 a.m. Thursday’s match will be a rematch of last Sunday’s regular season finale in which the Badgers downed the Huskers, 4-3.

First Round
No. 9 Nebraska (10-14, 3-8 Big Ten) vs. No. 8 Wisconsin (12-11, 4-7 Big Ten)
Match Date: Thursday, April 26, 2011
Location: Evanston, Ill.
Venue: Vandy Christie Tennis Center or Combe Tennis Center
Time: 9:30 a.m.

Quarterfinals
vs. No. 1 Ohio State (29-2, 11-0 Big Ten)
Match Date: Friday, April 27, 2012
Time: 9:30 a.m.

Semifinals
Match Date: Saturday, April 28, 2012
Time: 9:30 a.m.

Finals
Match Date: Sunday, April 29, 2012
Time: noon

The Big Ten Championship is being hosted by Northwestern University and will be played in Evanston, Ill. The match will be held outdoors at the Vandy Christie Tennis Center. In case of inclement weather, the match could be moved indoors to the Combe Tennis Center.

Coming off a defeat from the Badgers last weekend, the Huskers enter the tournament with a record of 10-14 while going 3-8 in Big Ten Conference play. Wisconsin is 12-11 on the year with a record of 4-7 in Big Ten action.

If the Huskers defeat Wisconsin on Thursday morning, they will advance to the second round of the tournament and play top-seeded Ohio State on Friday, April 27 at 9:30 a.m. The Buckeyes are 29-2 on the year and had a perfect 11-0 record in Big Ten play. The Tournament will conclude on Sunday, April 29 as an automatic NCAA tournament berth is up for grabs as the Big Ten Championship finals will begin at noon.

Last Weekend
Nebraska went 0-2 in its final weekend of regular season Big Ten action. The Huskers traveled up to Minneapolis, Minn., to take on the Golden Gophers and were defeated, 7-0. Nebraska then returned home to Lincoln and lost on senior day to the Wisconsin Badgers, 4-3. The Huskers started off by sweeping the doubles courts and took and early 1-0 lead into singles play. However, the Badgers battled back to eventually down the Huskers as they won singles point on courts No. 2, 4, 5 and 6.

BTN Men’s Tournament Coverage
The Big Ten Network will broadcast the tournament final on tape delay on May 10 at 5 p.m.

Huskers Drop Three Spots in Latest Rankings
In the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association Rankings released on April 24, the Huskers dropped three spots to No. 74 in the country. In singles play, the Huskers lone player ranked is Christopher Aumueller. He is ranked No. 76 this year with an 11-10 record this spring. In doubles play, the Huskers duo of Aumueller and Benedikt Lindheim are ranked No. 33 with a 12-5 record. Nebraska’s other doubles team of Andre Stenger and Eric Sock are ranked No. 72 in the country. The two are 2-1 this season as they first started playing as a pair on April 15 against Michigan State.

NU in the Rankings
Date     Ranking
1/3         #40
1/24      #39
2/2        #40
2/7        #38
2/22      T-#46
2/28      #54
3/6        #60
3/13      #55
3/20      #59
3/27      #70
4/3        #68
4/10      #68
4/17      #71
4/24      #74

Scouting the Badgers
The Wisconsin Badgers enter the Big Ten Tournament with a 12-11 record. They are 4-7 in Big Ten play. The Badgers have one doubles team ranked in No. 34 Billy Bertha and Fredrik Ask. The two are 11-5 on the season with all 16 matches coming from the No. 1 spot. Most likely playing No. 1 singles for the Badgers on Thursday will be Ask, who is 9-10 on court No. 1 and 10-12 overall on the year. Wisconsin is coached by Greg Van Emburgh. This is Van Emburgh’s sixth season with the Badgers.

Live Stats
Live Stats are provided throughout the Big Ten Tournament and can be found at the top of the page by clicking the link. You can also access the stats by going to the tournament homepage. That link is also provided at the top of the page.