March 3, 2009
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Capping off a month of tough play at home and on the road, No. 44 Northwestern (11-2) has reached its highest ranking since being the 38th-ranked squad in the nation on Feb. 13, 2007. Senior Marc Dwyer (Peachtree City, Ga./University of Nebraska - Independent Study H.S.) captures the first national singles ranking of his career with his ascension to No. 82.
Alex Sanborn (Houston, Texas/Kinkaid) and Joshua Graves (Milwaukee, Wis./Nicolet) and the tandem of Alexander Thams (Stockholm, Sweden/Enskilda Gymnasiet) and Andrew McCarthy (Cincinnati, Ohio/Indian Hills), who anchor the No. 2 and No. 3 spots for the Wildcats, respectively, are also ranked for the first time.
After posting an undefeated 5-0 record in the first month of the season, February saw the Wildcats continue to exhibit unshakable play in doubles and depth throughout the singles lineup.
The `Cats started the month on the road with a trip to Middle Tennessee State University to face the Blue Raiders. Northwestern emerged with a 4-3 victory to maintain a 6-0 record, its best since opening with the same mark during the 2000-01 season.
"Middle Tennessee State University is a quality team that typically makes the NCAA tournament every year," said head coach Arvid Swan. "They have exceptional doubles as evidenced by one of their teams winning the NCAA title two years ago."
After sweeping a Sunday doubleheader over Ball State and Lewis the following weekend, the Wildcats were back on the road, suffering an agonizing 4-3 decision to No. 25 Notre Dame on Thursday, Feb. 19. The loss snapped the Wildcats' eight-match season-opening winning streak.
After losing the doubles point, NU fell behind 3-1 before clawing its way back to even it at 3-3 and almost post the upset over the Fighting Irish. Senior Marc Dwyer pulled off a stunning, three-set victory over 18th-ranked Brett Helgeson.
Just two days later, the `Cats returned home to post a 5-2 victory over Western Michigan. At No. 1, Dwyer and Tobias Reitz (Reinbeck, Germany/Sachsenwaldschule Reinbeck) cruised to an 8-3 win over WMU's Michael Calderone and Zeyad Montasser, a duo that opened the season ranked No. 33 in the country.
NU then recorded a 7-0 upset over 47th-ranked Harvard on Feb. 22, a team that had taken two matches off No. 19 Michigan just two days prior. Dwyer notched his second triumph over a ranked opponent in four days, with a victory over No. 71 Chris Clayton at No. 1 singles.
The `Cats rounded out the month with a road trip to Virginia to face William & Mary and Old Dominion. The `Cats dropped a narrow 4-3 decision to the Tribe, but bounced back to top the Monarchs to end February with a 6-2 record and an 11-2 record overall.
NU aims to continue its strong play with the start of the conference slate on Friday evening as they travel to face in-state rival No. 7 Illinois. The 'Cats face a quick turnaround as they are scheduled to face the Indiana Hoosiers in Bloomington, Ind. Saturday morning.