Hawkeyes fight at Milwaukee Tennis Classic
Three of the four Iowa men’s tennis players advanced past the first round before eventually losing this past weekend in Milwaukee.
Jake Jacoby serves during the first round of the Mens Big Ten Tennis Tournament at the HTRC on April 26, 2018.
September 24, 2018
Four Iowa men’s tennis players traveled to Milwaukee this past weekend to compete in the Milwaukee Tennis Classic, and of the four, sophomore Will Davies unexpectedly made the deepest run. He made it to the quarterfinals before falling to ninth-seeded Lucas Wiedenmann of Tennessee.
Although none of the Hawkeyes won the tournament, they put up a fight. Three of the four Hawkeyes opened the tournament with a win in the Round of 64 singles matches. Third-seeded Kareem Allaf beat Collin Shick of North Carolina State in three sets (6-2, 3-6, 6-0), Davies cruised over Alex Jochim of Indiana/Purdue (6-1, 6-3), and Piotr Smietana beat Marquette’s Fran San Andres (6-4, 4-6, 6-0).
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Not every Hawkeye came away with a victory. Senior Jonas Larsen dropped his first match to Andrew Rodgers of Tennessee (6-7 [3], 6-2, 6-3). Additionally, in the Round of 32 for doubles, the dynamic duo of Allaf and Larsen surprisingly dropped their opening match against Joel Gamerov and David Norfeldt of San Diego (7-6), after being ranked No. 35 in the preseason doubles rankings.
Nonetheless, it was the weekend of Allaf and Davies. Along with making it to the quarterfinals in singles, Davies also made it to the Round of 16 for doubles after a victory with partner Smietana in the Round of 32. In addition, Allaf picked up two victories in singles before falling to No. 14 seed William Howells of Notre Dame in three sets (4-6, 6-2, 6-0).
Overall, it was a solid start to the season for Iowa. Some of the Hawkeyes gained valuable confidence playing on the road. Given that Iowa played poorly away from the Hawkeye Tennis Complex last season, finishing just 3-7, it was good for head coach Ross Wilson to see some of the returners get back into action with wins on the road in Milwaukee.
Iowa has a chance to continue its road success this weekend; it will return to action Saturday, traveling to the All-American Championships in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
