The University of Wisconsin men’s tennis team (9-10, 3-6 Big Ten) will close out its regular season this weekend. The Badgers will first take on the Northwestern Wildcats (13-12, 4-5) Friday afternoon, followed by a matchup with the Illinois Fighting Illini (14-7, 8-1) Sunday afternoon.
The Badgers are coming off a weekend where they dominated Michigan State, 6–1, followed by a tough 5–2 loss to Michigan. Both matches came on the road.
The Badgers have now won two of their last three matches, putting them in ninth place in the Big Ten.
Men’s tennis: Badgers split weekend matchups against Indiana, Purdue
The Badgers now hope that freshman Jared Pratt continues his stellar play. Pratt has won six straight individual matches, the best streak of any Badger this season.
In a stacked Big Ten conference, the Badgers have held their own against numerous powerhouse teams, earning at least one point in each match this season.
Northwestern, who is currently ranked eighth in the Big Ten, is coming off a tough weekend of losses to The Ohio State University and Penn State, two of the top teams in the Big Ten.
Illinois, however, is trending in the opposite direction. At second place in the Big Ten, the Fighting Illini recently won seven straight matches before losing to The Ohio State University last weekend.
In road matchups against both teams last season, the Badgers lost to Illinois before beating Northwestern. In the win, the Badgers were led by now-senior Osgar O’Hoisin, who picked up wins in both the doubles and singles frame. They’ll look to him again this weekend, as he teams up with Pratt in the doubles competitions.
Men’s tennis: Badgers fall to ranked Ohio State, Penn State over weekend
“Really excited to close the regular season at home with Senior Day on Sunday. We have some exciting Big Ten matchups in Northwestern and Illinois,” Head Coach Danny Westerman said. “It will be great to play in front of our fans one last time at home.”
Both matches will be played at Nielsen Tennis Stadium, with Friday’s battle against Northwestern starting at 3 p.m. and Sunday’s match against Illinois starting at 2 p.m. The Badgers will look for wins to move up in the standings as they head into the Big Ten Tournament, which starts next Thursday in Michigan.
