Freshman Brendan Lynch advanced to the second day of the Big Ten Individual Indoor Championships yesterday and set the tone for a Penn State youth movement.

Lynch defeated Eric Hodgman of Purdue 4-6, 7-6, 6-4 and then Elliot Bisnow from Wisconsin 6-2, 6-2, on Saturday before dropping a 6-1, 6-2 decision to Indiana's Dara McLoughlin yesterday.

The Nittany Lions also placed two players, sophomore Michael James and freshman Adam Slagter, in the semifinals of the consolation bracket, which begins play this morning.

James will take on Michigan's Andrew Mazlin while Slagter must play Minnesota's Nick Edlesfen in today's matches.

In yesterday's action, the Lions picked up 10 wins in all, advancing juniors Ryan Berger and Brad Hunter as well as James and Slagter to the quarterfinals.

"On Sunday a lot of teams are getting bounced and have no one left, if you can win 10, that's a good accomplishment," interim head coach Bill Potoczny said.

For Lynch, in his first action against Big Ten competition, the experience of playing against conference opponents goes far beyond that on the court.

"It gave Brendan confidence, sometimes when you're not in the lineup you can start to doubt yourself," Potoczny said.

"He's been practicing hard; this was a nice reward for him -- he knows he is good enough to beat these guys."

Both Hodgman and Bisnow were regular starters for their respective teams last spring, and Potoczny noted that Lynch would benefit from wins against players with starting experience.

Slagter, another freshman, is still alive in the consolation bracket. He also posted impressive victories during yesterday's play.

In his second consolation match Slagter knocked off Ohio State's Scott Green by a score of 6-4, 6-4. Green is a three-time national champion at doubles for the Buckeyes and beating a player of his caliber tacks on another positive the Lions can take with them from the tournament.

"This was a great round for the young guys," Potoczny said. "The underclassmen are doing special things for us."

James could face off against Slagter in the finals tomorrow if he can avenge Hunter's 6-4, 6-4 loss in the quarterfinals to Mazlin. The sophomore took a slightly different road to the semis.

His third victory of the day came against Berger, beating his teammate 6-2, 6-2.

With the chance for an all Penn State final match in the consolation bracket, the Lions can now take the weekend as a positive note in their final preparation for the spring season.

"When you're only losing to seeds in the consolation and some guys are beating seeds there, and playing each other, that just shows how deep of a team we have," Potoczny said.