#14 Illini Start Weekend Strong with Wins Over Eastern Kentucky, Indiana

URBANA, Ill. – No. 14 Illinois men's tennis took care of business on Friday with home wins over Eastern Kentucky and Indiana. The Orange and Blue improved to 18-5 on the season along with 7-2 in Big Ten play.

#14 Illinois 5, Eastern Kentucky 2

The Illini grabbed a lead in the match after taking doubles wins on Courts 1 and 2. Tyler Bowers and Hayden Jones were the first to finish with their 6-3 triumph at No. 2 doubles, while David Bakonyi and Zach Viiala closed out doubles play with a 6-4 victory on Court 1.

After the sides shifted to singles, Kenta Miyoshi doubled the home side's advantage with his 6-0, 6-3 tally over Nuno Pinheiro on Court 1. Sasha Colleu was not far behind with his 6-3, 6-2 decision at No. 4 singles before Gabriel Debru clinched the Illini victory via his 6-3, 6-3 margin on Court 2.

After the Colonels collected singles victories on Courts 3 and 6, Jeremy Zhang rounded out the afternoon with his 6-4, 7-5 victory over Joao Barreto at No. 5 singles.

RESULTS

Doubles
No. 1: David Bakonyi/Zach Viiala (Illinois) def. Nuno Pinheiro/Marek Nano (EKU), 6-4
No. 2: Tyler Bowers/Hayden Jones (Illinois) def. Ilie Cazac/Joao Barreto (EKU), 6-3
No. 3: Fernando Bulnes/Adrian Contreras (EKU) def. Jeremy Zhang/Adam Jilly (Illinois), 6-4

Order of finish: 2, 3, 1

Singles
No. 1: #17 Kenta Miyoshi (Illinois) def. Nuno Pinheiro (EKU), 6-0, 6-3
No. 2: #37 Gabriel Debru (Illinois) def. Marek Nano (EKU), 6-3, 6-3
No. 3: Fernando Bulnes (EKU) def. Hayden Jones (Illinois), 6-2, 6-4 
No. 4: Sasha Colleu (Illinois) def. Ilie Cazac (EKU), 6-3, 6-2
No. 5: Jeremy Zhang (Illinois) def. Joao Barreto (EKU), 6-4, 7-5
No. 6: Adrian Contreras (EKU) def. David Bakonyi (Illinois), 6-4, 6-4

Order of finish: 1, 4, 2, 3, 6, 5

#14 Illinois 4, Indiana 0

Illinois took the momentum from the afternoon and built upon it quickly, taking the doubles point with wins on Courts 1 and 3. Gabriel Debru and Tyler Bowers struck first with a 6-1 victory on Court 1. David Bakonyi and Zach Viiala followed in quick succession with a 6-1 victory of their own at No. 3 doubles. 

Viiala got the action started in singles play with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Braeden Gelletich of Indiana. Soon after, Adam Jilly and Debru finished only minutes after Viiala. Debru went first with a 6-4, 6-0 victory over Michael Andre on Court 3. 

Jilly closed out the night for the Orange and Blue with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Facundo Yunis at No. 4 singles. 

RESULTS

Doubles
No. 1: Gabriel Debru/Tyler Bowers (Illinois) def. Facundo Yunis/Jip van Assendelft (Indiana), 6-1
No. 2: #52 Kenta Miyoshi/William Mroz (Illinois) vs. #68 Sam Landau/Braeden Gelletich (Indiana), 2-3, unfinished
No. 3: David Bakonyi/Zach Viiala (Illinois) def. Aidan Atwood/Matteo Antonescu (Indiana), 6-1

Order of finish: 1, 3

Singles
No. 1: #17 Kenta Miyoshi (Illinois) vs. Sam Landau (Indiana), 7-5, 1-0, unfinished
No. 2: #76 William Mroz (Illinois) vs. Jip van Assendelft (Indiana), 5-7, 3-4, unfinished
No. 3: #37 Gabriel Debru (Illinois) def. Michael Andre (Indiana), 6-4, 6-0
No. 4: Adam Jilly (Illinois) def. Facundo Yunis (Indiana), 6-3, 6-2
No. 5: Sasha Colleu (Illinois) vs. Ben Pomeranets (Indiana), 6-3, 4-6, unfinished
No. 6: Zach Viiala (Illinois) def. Braeden Gelletich (Indiana), 6-3, 6-3

Order of finish: 6, 3, 4

UP NEXT

Illinois (18-5, 7-2 B1G) closes its homestand on Sunday afternoon, when the Illini host Purdue at Atkins Tennis Center at 2 p.m. CT.