Illinois men’s tennis splits weekend series against Wisconsin and Minnesota

Brian Bauer

Illinois’ Aleks Vukic hits a forehand in the meet against Kentucky on Feb. 24. Vukic and Vuk Budic won the doubles point against Wisconsin’s Eli Ogilvy and Justyn Levin, aiding in Illinois’ victory against the previously undefeated Big Ten team.

By Meghan Rest, Staff writer

The Illinois men’s tennis team ended Wisconsin’s undefeated Big Ten record Sunday afternoon.

The Illini moved to 10-9 overall and hold a 3-2 record in the Big Ten.

Despite a brief rain delay during singles competition, the Illini pulled through after the match was tied 2-2. Freshman Gui Gomes and junior Aleks Vukic finished off their opponents to seal the Illini win.

“I’m not sure anybody played great today, but on the road in conference (play) you have to expect the other team to play well and just weather the storm,” said head coach Brad Dancer. “Gui weathered a solid 20-minute storm from his opponent.”

The Illini found success early on with Gomes and freshman Zeke Clark earning a doubles point, the duo’s 15th-straight point of the season.

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“Our doubles has been improving since about six weeks ago,” Dancer said. “We have a way to go but we are playing well.”

Illinois also traveled to Minnesota on Friday night and lost 4-3.

Vukic and freshman Vuk Budic dominated the team of Eli Ogilvy and Justyn Levin in doubles. The freshman pair of Clark and Gomes sealed the doubles point for the Illini with a victory over Marino Alpeza and Josip Krstanovic.

In singles, Illinois did not keep the winning momentum. Although No. 20 Vukic and freshman Aleks Kovacevic both collected wins for the Illini, the team fell in four out of six matches. Vukic has extended his 12-match win streak and was named Big Ten Athlete of the Week on Monday.

However, singles competition was a different story for Illinois. Ogilvy topped Clark in three sets alongside teammate senior Julian Childers, who fell to Krstanovic in three as well. The two Golden Gopher victories tied the match.

Minnesota’s Alpeza and Felix Corwin defeated Budic and Gomes to win the match for Minnesota.

The Illini will host Iowa next Saturday, followed by Nebraska on Sunday.