Northwestern University Athletics
Friday, March 20
Evanston, Ill.
6 p.m. CT
Northwestern
1
vs
4
Michigan State
Photo by: Christina Lin/Northwestern Athletics
NU Falls to Michigan State, Michigan
3/22/2026 7:54:00 PM | Men's Tennis
EVANSTON, Ill. — No. 55 Northwestern suffered setbacks in its two matches at Combe Tennis Center this weekend, falling to No. 35 Michigan State on Friday night and No. 44 Michigan on Sunday afternoon.
Junior Ethan Schiffman's singles performances accounted for half of the Wildcats' (13-8, 1-5 Big Ten) point total over the weekend, as he went 2-0 at the No. 4 position without dropping a set. Schiffman has a team-best four wins in Big Ten play.
Against the Spartans (9-7, 6-0 Big Ten), Northwestern fell 4-1. Despite junior Greyson Casey and sophomore Carter Pate — the No. 25-ranked doubles team nationally — defeating Danial Rakhmatullayev and Taym Alazmeh, the No. 18 doubles team in the country, 6-2 at the No. 1 doubles spot, the Wildcats dropped the doubles point.
Michigan State proceeded to claim victories at the No. 5 and No. 6 singles positions before Schiffman put Northwestern on the board with a 7-5, 6-1 result at the No. 4 slot. The Spartans won the No. 2 singles match to clinch the match and remain perfect in conference play.
When the match concluded, Pate, on the No. 1 court, was amid a battle with the No. 11 player in the nation in Matthew Forbes. Though the Charleston, South Carolina native fell 7-5 in the first set, he led 5-4 in the second set when the match was abandoned.
Returning to the courts on Sunday, the Wildcats were narrowly defeated by the Wolverines (7-7, 3-3 Big Ten), 4-3. Northwestern's three points were the most it tallied against Michigan since 2017.
The match began with the Wildcats capturing a hard-fought doubles point. At No. 1 doubles, Pate and Casey moved to a perfect 16-0 on the season with a 7-5 victory. Schiffman and junior Cyrus Mahjoob, the No. 2 doubles team, secured the point with a 7-6 (7-5) result over the No. 66 doubles team nationally in Nicholas Steiglehner and Bjorn Swenson.
Within 20 seconds of each other, Schiffman and senior Chad Miller won their singles matches to give Northwestern a 3-0 lead. At No. 4 singles, Schiffman triumphed 6-3, 6-3, while Miller defeated his opponent 6-2, 6-2 at the No. 6 position.
The Wolverines then prevailed in the four remaining singles matches.
Next weekend, the Wildcats hit the road to face Penn State on Friday, March 27, at 6 p.m. CT, and No. 5 Ohio State on Sunday, March 29, at 11 a.m. CT.
Junior Ethan Schiffman's singles performances accounted for half of the Wildcats' (13-8, 1-5 Big Ten) point total over the weekend, as he went 2-0 at the No. 4 position without dropping a set. Schiffman has a team-best four wins in Big Ten play.
Against the Spartans (9-7, 6-0 Big Ten), Northwestern fell 4-1. Despite junior Greyson Casey and sophomore Carter Pate — the No. 25-ranked doubles team nationally — defeating Danial Rakhmatullayev and Taym Alazmeh, the No. 18 doubles team in the country, 6-2 at the No. 1 doubles spot, the Wildcats dropped the doubles point.
Michigan State proceeded to claim victories at the No. 5 and No. 6 singles positions before Schiffman put Northwestern on the board with a 7-5, 6-1 result at the No. 4 slot. The Spartans won the No. 2 singles match to clinch the match and remain perfect in conference play.
When the match concluded, Pate, on the No. 1 court, was amid a battle with the No. 11 player in the nation in Matthew Forbes. Though the Charleston, South Carolina native fell 7-5 in the first set, he led 5-4 in the second set when the match was abandoned.
Returning to the courts on Sunday, the Wildcats were narrowly defeated by the Wolverines (7-7, 3-3 Big Ten), 4-3. Northwestern's three points were the most it tallied against Michigan since 2017.
The match began with the Wildcats capturing a hard-fought doubles point. At No. 1 doubles, Pate and Casey moved to a perfect 16-0 on the season with a 7-5 victory. Schiffman and junior Cyrus Mahjoob, the No. 2 doubles team, secured the point with a 7-6 (7-5) result over the No. 66 doubles team nationally in Nicholas Steiglehner and Bjorn Swenson.
Within 20 seconds of each other, Schiffman and senior Chad Miller won their singles matches to give Northwestern a 3-0 lead. At No. 4 singles, Schiffman triumphed 6-3, 6-3, while Miller defeated his opponent 6-2, 6-2 at the No. 6 position.
The Wolverines then prevailed in the four remaining singles matches.
Next weekend, the Wildcats hit the road to face Penn State on Friday, March 27, at 6 p.m. CT, and No. 5 Ohio State on Sunday, March 29, at 11 a.m. CT.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
2,1,3
#1 Singles Match
123
Matthew Forbes / 0 (11/-) [MSU-M]
740
55UF
#2 Singles Match
12
Ozan Baris / 0 (36/-) [MSU-M]
76
50
#3 Singles Match
123
Taym Alazmeh / 0 [MSU-M]
650
45UF
#4 Singles Match
12
D. Rakhmatullayev / 0 [MSU-M]
51
76
#5 Singles Match
12
Mitchell Sheldon / 0 [MSU-M]
66
43
#6 Singles Match
12
David Saye / 0 [MSU-M]
66
32
Order of Finish:
5,6,4,2
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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