Northwestern University Athletics
`Cats Resume B1G Competition with Indiana, Purdue
3/5/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Mar. 5, 2015
| #21 Northwestern (8-5, 0-1) at #27 Indiana (9-3, 0-1) |
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| Date | Friday, Mar. 6 | 2 p.m. |
| Location | IU Tennis Center | Bloomington, Ind. |
| Live Scoring | Athletics.Indiana.edu |
| #21 Northwestern (8-5, 0-1) vs. Purdue (4-6, 0-1) |
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| Date | Sunday, Mar. 8 | Noon |
| Location | Combe Tennis Center | Evanston, Ill. |
| Live Scoring | NUsports.com |
| Updates | @NU_SportsLIVE  |
| #21 Northwestern (8-5) vs. Western Illinois (0-8) |
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| Date | Sunday, Mar. 8 | 6:30 p.m. |
| Location | Combe Tennis Center | Evanston, Ill. |
| Live Scoring | NUsports.com |
| Updates | @NU_SportsLIVE |
EVANSTON, Ill. -- No. 21 Northwestern returns in full force this weekend with a packed lineup of Big Ten and non-conference competition. To begin, the Wildcats travel to No. 27 Indiana on Friday for a 2 p.m. contest. They then come home on Sunday for a double-header against Purdue at noon and Western Illinois at 6:30 p.m.
Currently 8-5 on the season and 0-1 in conference play, NU dropped aspot in the ITA rankings to No. 21 this week. The `Cats played just one match last weekend, a 6-1 win over Middle Tennessee State.
The singles rankings remain unchanged, with Sam Shropshire at No. 93 and Strong Kirchheimer at No. 116. Both Wildcats have won their last two singles matches.
Northwestern has not yet cracked the doubles rankings, but the duo of Mihir Kumar and Alp Horoz pushed their winning streak to seven last Friday against MTSU. Playing at No. 3, the pair boasts an 8-1 record this spring.
No. 27 Indiana is 9-3 on the season and 0-1 in the Big Ten, having lost their conference opener to Illinois 7-0. The Hoosiers jumped nine spots in the rankings this week after defeating Saint Mary's and Washington in a West Coast jaunt last weekend.
The IU roster does not currently hold any ranked singles or doubles players. Northwestern has beaten Indiana the last two years, the most recent of which was a 6-1 victory at home in 2014.
Purdue is 4-6 this spring and 0-1 in conference play. The Boilermakers also dropped their first Big Ten match against Illinois, 6-1.
Ranked as high as No. 47 in January, Purdue fell out of the rankings in mid-February during a tough stretch of six consecutive losses. However, it bounced back last weekend with two wins over Morehead State and Dayton.
In the regular season last year, Purdue outlasted a late Northwestern rally to win 4-3 in West Lafayette. However, the `Cats avenged themselves in the Big Ten Tournament, where they swept the Boilermakers 4-0 in the quarterfinals.
Western Illinois has had a difficult spring so far and is 0-8 on the season. The Leathernecks play Oral Roberts on Saturday before coming to Evanston on Sunday. In 2014, the `Cats beat WIU 7-0.
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