April 8, 2012
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Varsity Tennis Center)
Score: No. 14 Northwestern 4, No. 15 Michigan 3
Records: NU (13-7, 6-1 Big Ten), UM (13-6, 6-1 Big Ten)
Next NU Event: Saturday, April 14 -- vs. Penn State (Evanston, Ill.), 11:00 a.m.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Northwestern capped its five-match road trip with a win against the most highly touted foe of the stretch Sunday by beating the 15th-ranked Michigan Wolverines at the Varsity Tennis Center in Ann Arbor, Mich., 4-3.
For the second time in as many days, the Wildcats struck first on the scoreboard by securing the doubles point against the Wolverines. Kate Turvy and Belinda Niu claimed the first victory at No. 3 with an 8-2 win against UM's Sarah Lee and Sam Crister. Turvy and Niu improved their record together to an impressive 11-2 this spring.
Michigan was able to even the ledger soon after when 7th-ranked Emina Bektas and Brooke Bolender completed their comeback against Northwestern's Linda Abu Mushrefova and Veronica Corning. Bektas and Bolender edged the 76th-ranked 'Cats, 8-6 in the top match.
The point would be doled out to the winner of the match at No. 2 between NU's Brittany Wowchuk and Nida Hamilton and UM's Mimi Nguyen and Michelle Sulahian. Wowchuk and Hamilton, a newly formed duo, picked up their second win of the weekend when they outlasted their opponents Sunday, 8-4.
It was the ninth time this season that Northwestern jumped on their opponents early by earning the doubles tally. The 'Cats have now won the match eight of the nine times that they have earned doubles victory this year.
Michigan notched its first win of the afternoon in singles play at the No. 4 position. There, No. 114 Nguyen handed Corning her first-ever loss in Big Ten competition. Nguyen won the match in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3. Corning, with the loss, drops to 6-1 in league matches this spring.
Turvy, ranked No. 21 in the latest ITA singles poll, put the 'Cats back on top for good when she pulled out a straight-set upset over 10th-ranked Bektas in the No. 1 match. Turvy ran past the Wolverine, 6-3, 6-4, to earn her team-best 14th win of the campaign. Bektas is the second top-10 foe that Turvy has conquered this season, joining 9th-ranked Diana Nakic of Baylor on March 4.
Hamilton survived another three-set affair to defeat Lee and secure the third point of the day for Northwestern. The sophomore won the first set with ease, 6-1, but dropped the second, 6-2. In the deciding frame, Hamilton took control early on and breezed to a 6-4 triumph. It was her fifth three-set affair of the season and the third time she emerged victoriously.
The match-clinching point was delivered off the racket of Wowchuk a short time later. The 62nd-ranked junior outworked Lee to win the opening set 7-6 (8). The players split the first eight games in the second set, but with the score knotted at four each, Wowchuk claimed victory in the final two games to win 6-4 and clinch the 13th match of the season for the Wildcats.
Nearby, Abu Mushrefova rallied to win her second set against No. 121 Sam Crister, 6-4, to force a final frame. The third set was extremely well played, but in the end Crister took home the win, 7-6 (2). After winning her first set versus No. 66 Bolender, Niu fell in a tiebreaker in the second, 7-6 (5). Bolender then doubled-up Niu in the superbreaker, 10-5, to capture Michigan's third and final point.
Northwestern will return home Saturday, April 14 for the first time since March 25. The 'Cats will welcome Penn State to the Vandy Christie Tennis Center on Saturday at 11 a.m. Ohio State will also visit Evanston on Sunday next weekend.
Doubles
1. No. 7 Emina Bektas/Brooke Bolender (UM) def. No. 76 Veronica Corning/Linda Abu Mushrefova (NU) - 8-6
2. Brittany Wowchuk/Nida Hamilton (NU) def. Mimi Nguyen/Michelle Sulahian (UM) - 8-4
3. Kate Turvy/Belinda Niu (NU) def. Sarah Lee/Sam Crister (UM) - 8-2
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2*
Singles
1. No. 21 Kate Turvy (NU) def. No. 10 Emina Bektas (UM) - 6-3, 6-4
2. No. 66 Brooke Bolender (UM) def. Belinda Niu (NU) - 6-7 (3), 7-6 (5), 1-0 (5)
3. No. 62 Brittany Wowchuk (NU) def. Sarah Lee (UM) - 7-6, 6-4
4. No. 114 Mimi Nguyen (UM) def. Veronica Corning (NU) - 6-2, 6-3
5. No. 121 Sam Crister (UM) def. Linda Abu Mushrefova (NU) - 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (2)
6. Nida Hamilton (NU) def. Michelle Sulahian (UM) - 6-1, 2-6, 6-4
Order of finish: 4, 1, 6, 3*, 5, 2
Be the first to know what's going on with the 'Cats -- Follow @NU_Sports on Twitter, become a fan of Northwestern Athletics on Facebook! and subscribe to the NU Sports Express e-newsletter to receive the latest news, schedule updates and video and to interact with NU. For more information on following specific Northwestern teams online, visit our Social Media page!