Rice University
Michigan State
Owls Beat Spartans 6-1
2/5/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Feb. 5, 2006
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- The 37th-ranked Rice men were solid on Sunday, beating 74th-ranked Michigan State 6-1 in East Lansing, Mich.
The Owls had their hand full with the Spartans during doubles. After a quick 8-1 victory for Ralph Knupfer and Filip Zivojinovic at number two, Michigan State evened the score with a tiebreaker win at number one. Rice's Ben Harknett and Christoph Müller secured the doubles point with a 9-7 win against John Allare and Scott Rasmussen at number three.
Zivojinovic struck again for the Owls in singles with a 6-1, 6-2 victory against Rasmussen at number six to give Rice the upperhand at 2-0. Knupfer struck next with a 6-1, 6-1 win against Joseph McWilliams at number three singles, followed closely by Tony Haerle's 6-2, 6-3 decision against Michael Flowers at number four to secure the team victory.
Robert Searle added a 6-1, 6-2 win against Adam Monich, and Harknett rallied for a 1-6, 7-6 (5), 10-8 victory Allare for the Owls' final score.
The win improves Rice's record to 4-1 on the year. The Owls return home next weekend, hosting Oklahoma State on Friday and Miami on Sunday, with both matches slated for noon starts.
Results
No. 37 Rice 6, No. 74 Michigan State 1
Doubles
1) Monich/McWilliams (MSU) def. No. 37 Haerle/Searle (RU), 9-8 (4)
2) Knupfer/Zivojinovic (RU) def. Flowers/Forger (MSU), 8-1
3) Harknett/Müller (RU) def. Allare/Rasmussen (MSU), 9-7
Singles
1) No. 36 Robert Searle (RU) def. Adam Monich (MSU), 6-1, 6-2
2) Ben Harknett (RU) def. John Allare (MSU), 1-6, 7-6 (5), 10-8
3) Ralph Knupfer (RU) def. Joseph McWilliams (MSU), 6-1, 6-1
4) Tony Haerle (RU) def. Michael Flowers (MSU), 6-2, 6-3
5) Alex Forger (MSU) def. Christoph Müller (RU) 7-5, 7-5
6) Filip Zivojinovic (RU) def. Scott Rasmussen (MSU), 6-1, 6-2
Players Mentioned
