April 18, 2010
Complete Results
Site: Evanston, Ill. (Vandy Christie Tennis Center)
Score: No. 9 Northwestern 6, No. 60 Minnesota 1
Records: NU (16-6, 7-1 Big Ten), Minnesota (10-12, 3-6 Big Ten)
Next NU Event: Saturday, April 24 -- at Penn State (Sarni Tennis Center), 10 a.m.
EVANSTON, Ill. -- On a picture-perfect day for tennis at the Vandy Christie Tennis Center, No. 9 Northwestern flexed its muscle in winning convincingly at the top five singles positions and the Nos. 2 and 3 doubles spots to post a 6-1 victory over No. 60 Minnesota on Sunday. Both of NU's Senior Day honorees, Lauren Lui and Samantha Murray (pictured), won singles matches on the day, with Lui clinching the 'Cats' fourth point with a 6-4, 6-0 decision at No. 3.
"It's always a bittersweet day," said NU head coach Claire Pollard. "It's time for them to move on and do more great things with their lives but they've meant so much to the program and given everything they have for four years so it's hard to start imagining the team without Lauren and Sam."
The Wildcats improved to 16-6 overall with a 7-1 mark in the Big Ten, good for second place in the conference standings with two league matches remaining.
NU got off to a fast start at No. 2 doubles as sophomore Elena Chernyakova and junior Maria Mosolova grabbed a 5-0 lead against Tijana Koprivica and Jackie Sperling. The 'Cats never looked back, winning the match 8-1 for their second Big Ten victory in as many tries this year.
Northwestern had similar success at No. 3 where a freshman tandem of Linda Abu Mushrefova and Kate Turvy took control against Mariana Spilca and Magdalena Wiecha with a 4-1 lead. NU went on to win 8-3 and clinch the doubles point for the Wildcats.
At the No. 1 spot, Pollard teamed up her two seniors, Murray and Lui, for the first time as they took on Alessandra Ferrazzi and Alexa Palen. The Wildcat duo fell behind 3-1 early on but went on a run to regain a 4-3 lead. With NU on the verge of closing out the match up 7-6, Ferrazzi and Palen were able to force a tiebreaker, which they won 7-4 to take the match 8-7.
As was the case on Saturday against Iowa, Northwestern came out strong in singles nearly across the board, beginning at No. 1 singles where Mosolova had no difficulty dispatching of Tijana Koprivica, using her full array of shots in a 6-2, 6-0 win. Mosolova is now 16-6 in dual singles matches this season.
Turvy continued her momentum from Saturday's win into her matchup with Minnesota's Alexa Palen, winning back-to-back sets by a 6-1 score for the second day in a row.
NU's senior leaders accounted for the ensuing points, beginning with 108th-ranked Lui defeating Minnesota's Jackie Sperling 6-4, 6-0. Lui fell behind in the early going of the first set but quickly regained her form to remain unbeaten (7-0) in the Big Ten this year. Finishing just a split second after Lui clinched the match for the 'Cats, 37th-ranked Murray put the finishing touches on a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Ferrazzi. Murray's final home regular season win ended with a perfect drop shot to finish off what was a hard-fought second set.
Chernyakova, playing her first singles match since April 4, dominated Magdalena Wiecha in the first set 6-0, but ultimately fell in three sets after dropping the next two 6-4, 6-3.
Finally, sophomore Stacey Lee waged a battle at No. 5 singles, prevailing after a long 7-6 first set against Doron Muravnik before finishing off the Gophers with a 6-2 win in the second set. Lee is now 8-0 in conference action this year and 15-4 in all dual matches.
"I thought today was good if not great but we'll certainly take the two wins we earned this weekend and try our best to learn where we can," Pollard said. "We're on the road our next two matches so hopefully we can focus in on improving again and staying on that path to where we are peaking in May."
Next weekend, the Wildcats embark on their final road trip of the regular season when they head east to take on Penn State and Ohio State on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. A pair of victories would leave NU with a final conference record of 9-1.
No. 9 Northwestern 6, No. 60 Minnesota 1
Singles
1: #13 Maria Mosolova (NU) def. Tijana Koprivica (MN), 6-2, 6-0
2: #37 Samantha Murray (NU) def. Alessandra Ferrazzi (MN), 6-2, 6-4
3: #108 Lauren Lui (NU) def. Jackie Sperling (MN), 6-4, 6-0
4: Kate Turvy (NU) def. Alexa Palen (MN), 6-1, 6-1
5: Stacey Lee (NU) def. Doron Muravnik (MN), 7-6, 6-2
6: Magdalena Wiecha (MN) def. Elena Chernyakova (NU), 0-6, 6-4, 6-3
Doubles
1: Ferrazzi/Palen def. #82 Lui/Murray (NU), 8-7 (4)
2: Chernyakova/Mosolova (NU) def. Koprivica/Sperling (MN), 8-1
3: Abu Mushrefova/Turvy (NU) def. Spilca/Wiecha (MN), 8-3
Order of Finish
Singles: (1, 4, 3*, 2, 6, 5)
Doubles: (2, 3*, 1)
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