Northwestern
Kentucky
'Cats Travel to Kentucky For ITA Kick-Off Weekend
1/25/2018 4:00:00 PM | Women's Tennis
| NORTHWESTERN WOMEN'S TENNIS: GAME DAY INFORMATION | |||||
| DATE | OPPONENT | TIME | LOCATION | VIDEO | LIVE STATS |
| Fri., Jan. 26 | Kentucky | 9 a.m. CT | Boone Tennis Complex; Lexington, Ky. |
N/A | ukathletics.com |
| Sat., Jan. 27 | UCLA or NC State |
9 a.m./Noon CT | Boone Tennis Complex; Lexington, Ky. |
N/A | ukathletics.com |
| Social: Twitter (@NUWildcatTennis) | Instagram (@nuwildcattennis) | Facebook | |||||
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern faces an early test in its dual match season this weekend as it travels to Lexington, Kentucky, to participate in ITA Kick-Off Weekend.
The Wildcats (2-0) open up play against host and 21st-ranked Kentucky at 9 a.m. Central time Friday. The day's other match features No. 16 UCLA taking on NC State.
Friday's winners square off at noon CT Saturday with a berth in the ITA National Indoor Team Championships on the line. Friday's losers will meet in Saturday's first match at 9 a.m.
NU got its dual match season off on the right foot last Saturday, posting convincing wins over Ball State, 6-1, and Saint Louis, 7-0. The Wildcats won all six of the day's doubles matches while dropping only one singles match with that coming in a third-set superbreaker.
The Wildcats' singles lineup features three nationally ranked players as Lee Or is No. 60, Maddie Lipp is No. 92 and Rheeya Doshi is No. 99.
Northwestern's talented doubles lineup is headlined by Erin Larner and Lipp are ranked No. 4 while Alex Chatt and Or are No. 8. Or and Larner are No. 11 when paired with one another while Lipp and Chatt are No. 29. Newcomers Inci Ogut and Julie Byrne are No. 40.
Kentucky is the top seed in this weekend's four-team field. The Wildcats posted a 17-9 record a year ago, falling to Michigan in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Kentucky's singles lineup is led by Akvile Paražinskaite who is ranked No. 26. The team opened its 2018 campaign by posting a 7-0 win over Miami (Ohio) and a 4-0 victory over Northern Kentucky on Wednesday.
UCLA opened its season with a 4-2 win over UC Santa Barbara despite dropping the doubles point. The Bruins return their entire roster from a team that went 14-9 a year ago and fell to Pepperdine in the NCAA Tournament Second Round. UCLA is led by sophomore Ena Shibahara who was the National Rookie of the Year and Pac-12 Singles Player of the Year last season. She enters this year ranked No. 16 and is No. 7 in doubles when paired with Jada Hart. Hart also boast a No. 27 ranked when teamed with Gabby Andrews. Joining Shibahara with national singles rankings are Abi Altick (46), Alaina Miller (76) and Terri Fleming (100).
NC State will be opening its dual match season this weekend. The Wolfpack lineup features Claudia Wiktorin who is ranked No. 61 in singles and No. 9 in doubles with Eleni Christofi. NC State posted a 19-11 record in 2017, falling to Georgia in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
The Wildcats hold a 9-1 all-time record against Kentucky, have split two previous meetings with NC State and are 3-7 against UCLA. Northwestern is looking to advance to the ITA National Indoor Team Championships for the first time since 2014. The 'Cats captured back-to-back ITA Indoor titles in 2009 and 2010.
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