Tennis: Ranked foes deal defeats to the Wildcats

The Wildcats faced fierce competition, but were able to strike a few blows of their own.

Northwestern’s spring quarter is just beginning, and so too is the stretch run for the school’s tennis teams. On both the men’s and women’s sides, the Big Ten tournament is just over three weeks away. However, the stretch run continues to toss tough foes at the Wildcats, including a top-20 opponent for both squads. The win-loss column may not show it, but this weekend should still provide a lot of positives when looking ahead.

No. 66 Northwestern men’s tennis (11-11, 3-4 B1G) began the weekend with an in-state showdown against No. 23 Illinois (12-6, 5-2 B1G). The Fighting Illini lived up to their name, dealing the Wildcats a sharp blow by easily taking the doubles point in an outdoor affair. Vincent Yang and Max Bengtsson gave Illinois’ Mathis Debra and Max Mroz a tough battle, but the visitors escaped with a 7-6 (7-4) victory to seal the doubles point.

Bengtsson then took his second loss of the day to open up singles play. with the Illini’s Zach Viiala sweeping him 6-3, 6-4. Saiprakash Goli was also swept by Illinois’ Kenta Miyoshi, who’s 16th in the nation currently. Northwestern’s Felix Nordby had the best shot at a victory, but couldn’t hold on after taking the first set and fell 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 to William Mroz. None of the other three singles matches were played to completion, meaning the Fighting Illini drove out of Evanston with a 4-0 victory.

The Wildcats were back inside later Saturday afternoon as they welcomed Youngstown State (11-6, 3-0 Horizon) to the Combe Tennis Center. Bengtsson started the evening meet by getting himself in the win column in doubles. He and Vincent Yang easily earned a 6-2 victory, and Goli and Greyson Casey’s ensuing victory (also by a score of 6-2) gave Northwestern the doubles point. It was the first purple point of the day, but it wouldn’t be the last.

Nordby got the party started in singles play, easily sweeping Youngstown State’s Ethan Dasset 6-2, 6-3. Bengtsson was next up, closing out an incredibly busy day with a 6-1, 6-0 romp over Matteo Ceradelli. Chad Miller finished off the dominant run for the Wildcats with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over Youngstown’s Mihai Haita. After dealing with a 4-0 loss earlier in the day, Northwestern dealt out a 4-0 loss to an opponent of its own. The victory snapped a three-match losing streak for the Wildcats and kept them afloat in a fierce Big Ten.

Meanwhile, No. 47 Northwestern women’s tennis (10-10, 3-5 B1G) was out of Evanston on a tough road trip to Michigan. The first foe on the docket for the Wildcats was No. 73 Michigan State (11-8, 3-5 B1G), but the Spartans’ lower ranking belied a fierce opponent. Kiley Rabjohns and Britany Lau took the first doubles match 6-1, but Michigan State took the next two matches in extra points to secure itself the doubles point. With both of Northwestern’s losses ending 7-6 (8-6), the Wildcats had to hope that doubles point wouldn’t be crucial.

Unfortunately, it would be extremely crucial. Neena Feldman dominated with a 6-1, 6-0 victory to open singles play and tie the match, but Michigan State’s Amara Brahmbhatt swept Sydney Pratt to put the home side back on top. Lau responded with a sweep of the Spartans’ Ellie Blackford in a 6-4, 6-3 win, but Michigan State continued to battle back. The Spartan’s Liisa Vehvilainen survived a marathon matchup with Northwestern’s Erica Jessel, and Vehvilainen was able to escape with a 2-6, 6-1, 6-2 win. Michigan State then sealed things up with a 6-4, 6-3 victory from Matilde Morais. The Wildcats battled hard all evening, but left East Lansing with a 4-2 loss.

The trip to Ann Arbor was even more daunting, considering the opponent on the docket was No. 3 Michigan (15-3, 8-0 B1G). The Wolverines showed no interest in allowing Northwestern to leave the Great Lakes State with a split, and dominated early in doubles play. Jessel and Mika Dagan Fruchtman fell 6-3, and then Rabjohns and Lau faced a 6-3 defeat of their own. With the doubles point falling to the home side, the Wildcats once again had to claw back from a deficit in singles play.

Early action in singles play only widened the gap. Michigan’s Reese Miller swept Rabjohns 6-3, 6-3, and Piper Charney (currently rankled 22 in the nation) brought out her own brooms with a 6-3, 7-5 sweep of Lau. Pratt was able to strike a blow of revenge for Northwestern with a 6-4, 6-4 sweep of Lily Jones, but Emily Sartz-Lunde’s three-set takedown of Feldman sealed the victory for the Wolverines.

Yet before Sartz-Lunde’s victory, the Wildcats struck a massive blow of their own. Michigan’s Julia Fliegner was third in the nation heading into Sunday’s action. But after she took the first set from Erica Jessel, the first-year erupted for consecutive set wins to topple one of the country’s best players in a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 triumph.

The victory is less than two months after Jessel’s first career singles win at the No. 1 position, and if Sunday’s action is any indication, she’ll hold the top spot in head coach Claire Pollard’s rotation for years to come.

Wildcat tennis teams only went 1-3 last weekend, but there’s reason to be optimistic in their ability to compete with the nation’s best. That optimism is important, because the schedule continues to serve up a gauntlet of tough opponents.

For Northwestern’s men’s side, they’re following in the women’s footsteps with a road trip to Michigan. No. 31 Michigan State and No. 23 Michigan are both 2.5 games ahead of the Wildcats in the standings, so those games could be massive for postseason seeding.

The women’s team is back home to begin April, with two more highly ranked opponents on tap. Northwestern has to deal with No. 11 Ohio State and No. 42 Penn State, with the Wildcats desperately trying to exit a stretch that’s seen them drop four of five meets. If both teams can split their weekend affairs, they’ll put themselves in a great place in the Big Ten Tournament race.