University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Continue Big Ten Play in Michigan
3/19/2015 12:00:00 AM | Tennis
Michigan Live Scoring |
MINNEAPOLIS - Riding a six-match winning streak, the No. 63 Minnesota women's tennis team will continue Big Ten competition this weekend with two road matches. The Gophers play No. 13 Michigan Saturday at 11 a.m. CT and conclude the weekend with an 11 a.m. CT contest against No. 44 Michigan State.
ABOUT MICHIGAN
At 11-3 with a 2-0 start in Big Ten play, No. 13 Michigan enters the weekend with a five-match winning streak, its longest of the season. During that span, Michigan has outscored its opponents, 31-4, and has won all five doubles competitions. The Wolverines boast three ranked singles players in No. 19 Ronit Yurovsky, No. 21 Emina Bektas and No. 124 Sarah Lee. In doubles, Bektas and Alex Najarian are ranked 14th, while Yurovsky and Lee are 64th. Bektas is 7-2 in the top singles spot, while Yurovsky is 3-2. Bektas and Najarian are 8-3 in the top doubles flight.
ABOUT MICHIGAN STATE
After vaulting from No. 73 to a program-best No. 44 in the rankings, Michigan State will open the weekend with a Saturday match against Wisconsin before Minnesota comes to town. The Spartans have won four matches in a row and 11 of their last 12. Their two most recent wins were their first two match of conference competition--MSU defeated Rutgers on the road and Nebraska at home. Erin Faulkner is 9-5 at No. 1 singles and is part of the team's go-to No. 1 doubles tandem with Athena Trouillot.
AGAINST THE OPPONENTS
Minnesota enters the weekend with a 15-27 record against Michigan and a 27-13 mark against Michigan State. Last year, the Gophers played both teams on the road, falling, 7-0, to the Wolverines and edging Michigan State, 4-3.
B1G MATCHES AHEAD
The Gophers' non-conference schedule ended Monday when they defeated Florida Gulf Coast on the road, 6-1. Minnesota, fresh off its winningest conference season since 2003, will immerse itself back into Big Ten play this weekend after opening league action with a 4-3 win over Wisconsin last week.
TANEY RETURNS TO ANN ARBOR
Fourth-year Gophers associate head coach will return to her college alma mater when Minnesota takes on Michigan Saturday. Taney was a standout tennis player at Michigan from 2008-11. She left Michigan with the Wolverines' record for most career doubles victories with 114 and was a two-time ITA Scholar-Athlete. Additionally, she was an NCAA Doubles Tournament qualifier in 2010 and was named All-Big Ten in 2008, 2010 and 2011.
LAMBERT STAYS HOT, MOVES UP
Senior Aria Lambert has won nine of her last 10 singles matches and is 12-2 on the spring at four different positions. The Deephaven, Minn. native now has 74-career singles wins to her credit, tying her with Lisa Martin, Anne Gorde, Meg Horan and Nancy Rost for 12th in program history.
A GOOD PARTNER
Redshirt junior Julia Courter has stood out in doubles this season. She is 16-5 on the season with an 11-2 mark in the spring, playing alongside classmates Paula Rincon-Otero and Jessika Mozia. With a 6-3 win over South Dakota's Tacy Haws-Lay and Beatriz Souza alongside Mozia, Courter hit the 50-career win plateau in doubles. Now at 54-career singles wins, she is ranked 42nd nationally with Rincon-Otero.
A GOOD FIRST IMPRESSION
Freshman Caroline Ryba has been one of the top players on Minnesota's team this season. Last week, the Glenview, Ill. native helped the Gophers extend their season-best winning streak to six by pushing her own singles winning streak to the same number with two wins at the No. 2 position. After clinching the Gophers' 4-3 win over Wisconsin Friday, Ryba improved to 10-1 on the spring season with a straight-set road win over Florida Gulf Coast's Breana Stampfli.
UP AND COMING
Minnesota is looking to build upon a successful 2014 campaign. Last year, the Gophers posted their highest win total since 2003 at 17. After beginning last season unranked, the Maroon and Gold climbed as high at 55th en route to a seven-win improvement from the previous season. This season, the Maroon and Gold began the year at No. 71 and is now 63rd after an 11-4 start. They have won six in a row and are 8-1 at home.
HOW THE SCORING WORKS
For Big Ten play, three doubles matches will be played to begin the dual. Each match is a one-game pro set to eight, with a tiebreak at seven-all. The first team to earn two doubles wins earns one team point. Doubles play will followed by six singles matches (best two of three sets--tie-breaks at six-all). Each singles match is worth one team point. Regular-ad scoring is in effect for conference play.
Players Mentioned
