April 21, 2011
No. 17 Northwestern (16-6, 8-0 Big Ten) at No. 10 Michigan (19-3, 9-0 Big Ten)
Saturday, April 23
Varsity Tennis Center
Ann Arbor, Mich. 10 a.m. CT
Live Video/Scoring: (Video unavailable if played outdoors)
No. 17 Northwestern (16-6, 8-0 Big Ten) at Michigan State (12-10, 1-8 Big 12)
Sunday, April 24
MSU Tennis Facility
East Lansing, Mich. 10 a.m. CT
EVANSTON, Ill. -- No. 17 Northwestern heads to the Great Lakes State this weekend gunning for its 12th Big Ten championship under head coach Claire Pollard. Northwestern will meet fellow Big Ten unbeaten and 10th-ranked Michigan (19-3, 9-0) at 10 a.m. Saturday with the winner gaining the inside track to the championship. On Sunday, the 'Cats play their regular-season finale at Michigan State.
Live video and scoring will be provided for NU's showdown with the Wolverines (linked above), unless the match is played outdoors in which case a video feed will not be available.
With both Northwestern and Michigan coming into the weekend undefeated in conference play, Saturday's contest will decide the Big Ten champion. Last season, Michigan upended Northwestern in the regular season -- ending the 'Cats' 81-match Big Ten win streak and 11-year run as conference champions -- en route to a 10-0 record and a conference title, the Wolverines' first since 1997. In 2009, the Big Ten adopted the practice of awarding the Big Ten championship to the winners of the regular season, not the Big Ten Tournament.
NU in the National Rankings
In the most recent edition of the Campbell's/ITA College Tennis team rankings, the Wildcats dropped two spots but still remain in the top-20, sitting at No. 17. On the individual side, senior Maria Mosolova stayed put at No. 13 despite dropping her first match of the dual season to Purdue's Jennifer Rabot. Freshman Belinda Niu also is ranked at No. 73, while Brittany Wowchuck rose to the No. 71 spot, up from No. 77 last week.
In doubles action, Nida Hamilton and Linda Abu Mushrefova lead the way for Northwestern, boasting the No. 13 ranking in the nation for doubles teams. With two big wins under their belt over the weekend, the newly formed duo of Abu Mushrefova and Elena Chernyakova broke into the rankings at No. 57.
'Cats in the Conference
Northwestern has pieced together a stellar Big Ten season, with a 41-7 mark in league singles matches and a 20-4 record in doubles play. Sophomore Kate Turvy (8-0) is NU's lone unbeaten singles player in Big Ten dual play while Maria Mosolova and Belinda Niu each have suffered just one loss apiece. Turvy's unblemished effort has upped her two-year conference record to 15-3.
Scouting the Wolverines
Aside from entering the weekend with an undefeated conference record, Michigan has only three losses on the season, all three coming from top-15 teams. The Wolverines (19-3, 9-0 Big Ten) are on a nine-match winning streak, sweeping seven of those nine, 7-0.
Michigan is a very experienced team led by seniors Denise Muresan, Whitney Taney, Rika Tatsuno and Kari Wig. Muresan holds the No. 1 spot with a 16-5 mark, but Tatsuno leads all Wolverines with 18 singles victories on the season. Muresan is paired up with freshman Brooke Bolender to form UM's No. 1 doubles team, ranked seventh in the country and earning 21 wins.
Northwestern holds a distinct advantage over Michigan in the all-time series with a 46-9 record against the Wolverines. The two split the series last season, with Michigan winning in the regular season, 4-3, and NU having the upper hand in the Big Ten Tournament final, 4-0.
Scouting the Spartans
Michigan State heads into Sunday on a seven-match losing streak, including a 4-3 loss at Iowa and 6-1 loss at Illinois last weekend. The Spartans (12-10, 1-8 Big Ten) started strong, going 7-1 out of the gates, but cooled off once the Big Ten season began.
MSU is a very young team, with only two seniors, led by sophomore Amy Barton on the No. 1 line. Barton has 12 wins this season for the Spartans, but freshman Marina Bohrer leads the team with 16 at the No. 3 spot. Barton and Bohrer have combine to make MSU's No.1 doubles team in every match this season, boasting a 16-6 record which is tops on the team.
Northwestern is undefeated against Michigan State under head coach Claire Pollard and holds a dominating all-time series lead over the Spartans, 34-1.
Catching Up with the 'Cats
Northwestern's nine-match winning streak came to a halt on Thursday when No. 7 Baylor edged NU, 4-3, in a dual that came down to a tiebreaker set in the final match. But the 'Cats rebounded emphatically with matching 6-1 victories over Big Ten foes Indiana and Purdue. Northwestern has now won its last 16 matches against Big Ten opponents, a streak it hopes to keep alive this weekend.
Looking Ahead
Up next, the Wildcats will travel back to Michigan for the Big Ten Championships in Ann Arbor on April 28-May 1. Northwestern is looking for its 13th conference tournament title in as many years under Pollard. Stay close to NUsports.com for more news and information leading up to Championship weekend.
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