#23 Northwestern (1-2) vs. Penn State (1-4)
Saturday, Feb. 14, 2015 • 11 a.m.
Combe Tennis Center
Evanston, Ill.
#23 Northwestern (1-2) vs. #33 Purdue (2-1)
Sunday, Feb. 15, 2015 • 11 a.m.
Combe Tennis Center
Evanston, Ill.
Live Scoring
EVANSTON, Ill. – The Northwestern women's tennis team begins the 2015 conference slate with a pair of home matches this weekend. The 23rd-ranked Wildcats welcome Penn State to the Combe Tennis Center on Saturday and play host to No. 33 Purdue on Sunday. Both matches will begin at 11 a.m.
The 'Cats have played tough competition so far in 2015. At the ITA Weekend Kick-Off, NU dropped a 4-3 decision to No. 32 Arizona State, but Northwestern bounced back to dominate No. 21 Rice, 6-1. In their most recent match, the Wildcats lost a tight 5-2 match at fourth-ranked Duke.
Freshman Alex Chatt has had a strong start to the 2015 campaign, winning her first three matches at the fifth singles spot. Chatt has won all six sets she has played. Fellow freshman Erin Larner is also playing good tennis. She began the season in the No. 4 spot and worked her way up to No. 2 through the first three matches. Larner is 15-5 overall this season.
Penn State is 1-4 this season. After losing their first four matches, the Nittany Lions beat Pittsburgh in their last outing, 5-2. Penn State comes to Evanston with a nationally ranked doubles team. The duo of Victoria Kisialeva and Dasha Sapogova are ranked No. 34 in the ITA poll.
Northwestern is 30-0 all-time against Penn State. The 'Cats won a 7-0 shutout last season in Evanston.
Purdue will open Big Ten play with Sunday's match. The Boilermakers are 2-1 in 2015 with wins over No. 42 Washington and No. 25 Tulsa. Purdue also has a highly ranked doubles team. Daniela Vidal and Tess Bernard-Feigenbaum are the 24th-ranked tandem in the country.
The Wildcats have dominated the all-time series against Purdue, holding a 43-2 advantage. Northwestern earned a tight 4-3 victory last season.