Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Tennessee
Northwestern Ousts Tennessee From ITA Indoor Team Championship
2/12/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Feb. 12, 2010
Complete Results
MADISON, Wis. -- No. 2 Northwestern rolled to a 5-1 victory over No. 10 Tennessee in the opening round of the 2010 ITA National Indoor Team Championship Friday in Madison, Wis., to earn a spot in Saturday's quarterfinals. Twelfth-ranked Maria Mosolova easily handled No. 6 Caitlin Whoriskey, 6-2, 6-2, at the top singles position to clinch the win for the 'Cats.
NU (5-0), the tournament's second seed and defending champion, is now slated to meet No. 7 Florida at 3:30 p.m. CT. The match will be the Gators' second straight contest against a Big Ten foe after Florida defeated Michigan, 5-1, on Friday.
Knowing that every point counts, Northwestern got off to a strong start in doubles to take the all-important 1-0 lead entering singles. NU's Samantha Murray and Kate Turvy posted the first win of the tournament by defeating Maria Sorbello and Jennifer Meredith, 8-6. Murray and Turvy gained a break advantage early in the match and nursed that lead all the way to the finish. For Murray and Turvy, the victory marked their fourth in a row.
It was the same story at No. 2 doubles where Maria Mosolova and Brittany Wowchuk topped Rosalia Alda and Zsofia Zubor of Tennessee by an 8-6 margin, securing NU's 1-0 lead.
Tennessee in turn posted its first win of the day when its No. 1 nationally ranked duo of Caitlin Whoriskey and Natalie Pluskota staved off a valiant challenge by Northwestern's Elena Chernyakova and Lauren Lui. The Wildcat tandem trailed 7-5 before rallying to push the match to tiebreakers where Whoriskey and Pluskota edged out a 9-8 victory.
The 'Cats again took control in singles play with two NU players--Lui and sophomore Stacey Lee--downing their Volunteer opponents in swift fashion. Lui defeated Pluskota by scores of 6-1, 6-1, and Lee won in her singles debut at the ITA Indoor Team Championship, 6-1, 6-2, over Tennessee's Katie Lee.
At No. 2, Murray took on 51st-ranked Sorbello and, after winning the first set 6-4 and jumping to a 4-3 lead in the second, seemed poised to clinch the dual for the Wildcats before Sorbello came back to win the set 6-4. The third set was again a close one but Sorbello extended the match, winning in the tiebreaker 7-6.
But Mosolova brought her A-game to her match against sixth-ranked Whoriskey, against whom Mosolova split her two prior matches this season. Mosolova was dominant from the start, beating Whoriskey 6-2, 6-2, to send NU into the second round and improve to 13-6 this season.
Scouting the Gators
Florida brings a perfect 8-0 record into Saturday's match against Northwestern after beating Michigan in the first round of the ITA Indoor Team Championship. The Gators feature an impressive four ranked singles players, led by a pair of freshmen in No. 13 Allie Will and No. 15 Lauren Embree. No. 3 singles player Marrit Boonstra brings a wealth of experience to the lineup; Boonstra was a 2009 singles All-American and finished ranked No. 7 in the nation.
Complete results of NU's win over Tennessee are below:
No. 2 Northwestern 5, No. 10 Tennessee 1
Singles
1: #12 Maria Mosolova (NU) def. #6 Caitlin Whoriskey (TN), 6-2, 6-2
2: #51 Maria Sorbello (TN) def. #48 Samantha Murray (NU), 4-6, 6-4, 7-6
3: #85 Kate Turvy (NU) def. Rosalia Alda (TN), 6-2, 0-6, 6-1
4: Lauren Lui (NU) def. Natalie Pluskota (TN), 6-1, 6-1
5: Brittany Wowchuk (NU) vs. Zsofia Zubor (TN), No match
6: Stacey Lee (NU) def. Katie Lee (TN), 6-1, 6-2
Doubles
1: Pluskota/Whoriskey (TN) def. Chernyakova/Lui (NU), 9-8
2: Mosolova/Wowchuk (NU) def. Alda/Zubor (TN), 8-6
3: Murray/Turvy (NU) def. Meredith/Sorbello (TN), 8-6
Order of Finish:
Singles: (4, 6, 2, 1*, 3)
Doubles: (3, 2*, 1)
Players Mentioned
