The Iowa men’s tennis team (9-10, 1-6) will host No. 11 Illinois at 3 p.m. today at the Hawkeye Tennis & Recreation Complex. The Hawkeyes are coming off of a tough 4-3 loss to No. 62 Nebraska on Wednesday.
Iowa dropped the doubles point in a pair of close matches at the No. 1 and No. 2 spots. The Hawkeyes battled their way back in singles, but it wasn’t enough to send the Cornhuskers packing. It came down to the wire as sophomore Dominic Patrick, playing at the No. 5 position, dropped his first set, 6-1, before bouncing back, 6-3, in the second set. Patrick came from behind once again after 4-1 in the third set. Patrick won the next five games to secure the match.
It came down to a fight at No. 3 singles spot with Iowa senior Juan Estenssoro, who dropped the first set, 6-1, fought back to win a second set tiebreaker 7-6 (7-3). The Hawkeye lost match, falling, 6-3, in the third set.
The Fighting Illini will enter the match with a 16-7 record, 5-2 in conference play.
— by Jordan Bucher
