Women's Tennis Wraps up Regular Season on Road
4/17/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
April 17, 2009
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State women's tennis team (8-13, 1-7 Big Ten) returns to action on Saturday, April 18 and Sunday, April 19 as it travels to No. 33 Illinois and No. 43 Indiana, respectively. In 2008 the Spartans fell in a 4-3 heartbreaker to Illinois. Against Indiana last year, MSU fell 6-1 at home.
Last Time Out
The Spartans fell, 4-3, to Purdue in the Spartans' final home match of the season. Freshmen Dana Guentert (Liburn, Ga.) and Elena Ivanova (Moscow, Russia) picked up singles wins while the team earned the doubles point, accounting for the Spartans' three points.
Frosh. Of the Year?
Dana Guentert (Lilburn, Ga.) has started her Spartan career with an impressive record of 18-6 on the season. Guentert is 8-2 in her last 10 completed singles matches, winning her last seven. Guentert leads the team with a .750 win percentage, and is second on the team with her 18 wins. Guentert has posted a perfect 5-0 record at the No. 5 singles spot, and is 5-2 at the No. 6 spot this season. Her 10 wins in the spring are second on the team, and her .833 win percentage is tops in dual play on the team. Her .833 win-percentage is tops for all Big Ten freshman, and her seven-match winning streak is currently the second longest out of any student-athlete in the Big Ten.
Conference Honors
Elena Ivanova (Moscow, Russia) was honored as the Big Ten Women's Tennis Athlete of the Week on March 31. This was the first Big Ten weekly honor for the freshman in her career. This marks the first laurel for the Spartans since Feb. 14, 2007, when Christine Bader was named Big Ten Athlete of the Week by the conference. Ivanova now boasts a 17-14 singles mark, seeing most of her action this season at No. 3 singles. 10 of Ivanova's wins have come during the dual season, a team-best in the spring.
Scouting the Spartans
Michigan State enters the weekend matches with a record of 8-13. Pacing the Spartans is Whitney Wilson (Evansville, Ind.), who has an individual record of 19-14; her 19 wins are team-best. Anchoring the Spartans at No. 1 singles is senior Stephanie Kebler (Okemos, Mich.). On the spring, Kebler has tallied nine singles wins. Also contributing to the Spartan success is Ivanova. Ivanova has posted 10 wins during the spring season, seeing most of her action at the No. 3 singles position this year. In each of the team's eight wins this season, the Spartans have earned a win at the No. 5 singles position. Overall, MSU has a .600 win percentage in that spot this season, the best of any singles position
Doubles Success
The Spartans have picked up the doubles point in 13 matches on the season, including all eight wins. The doubles tandem of Manon Noe (Liancourt, France) and Wilson is 9-7 on the dual season. Compiling a 7-3 record in doubles play is the pairing of Ivanova and Kebler. The pair has mostly seen action in the No. 2 doubles spot during the season, but boast a 2-1 record at the No. 1 spot. The tandem's most notable win was an upset of the 35th-ranked doubles tandem of Wisconsin's Elizabeth Carpenter and Angela Chupa.
Sophomore Sensations
The Spartans have received contributions this season from several sophomores. Leading the way for the class is Wilson, who leads the team with a 19-14 singles record. Also contributing to the Spartans is Noe, who partners with Wilson to form the No. 1 doubles tandem for the Spartans. Together, the pair is 9-7 on the spring, with 13 victories overall this season.
Road Warriors
The mileage the team will encompass by the end of the spring season is 13,262 total miles. In that span, one could drive from East Lansing, Mich., to Santa Maria, Brazil, the home of Spartan Head Coach Simone Jardim, and back.
Scouting the Illini
At the reigns for Illinois is head coach Michelle Dasso, who is in her third season with the Illini. Illinois enters the weekend with a record of 16-5 overall and is 7-1 in the Big Ten. The Illini are paced by reigning Big Ten Athlete of the Week, Megan Fudge. Fudge has tallied 19-wins this season for Illinois, seven of which occurred against Big Ten opponents. The 75th-ranked ITA singles player, Fudge has spent all of her time in the top of the lineup this season. Leading the doubles portion of the lineup at the No. 1 spot is the tandem of Chelcie Abajian and Leigh Finnegan. Together, the pair is 9-6 this spring, with 4 of its wins coming against Big Ten opponents.
Scouting the Hoosiers
Indiana is led by 32nd-year head coach Lin Loring. The Hoosiers enter the weekend with a 13-8 record and are 5-3 in Big Ten play. The No. 43 Hoosiers are paced by senior Sigrid Fischer; she is 12-9 this spring in the No. 3 spot. Maria Guerreiro and Katya Zapadalova comprise the No. 1 doubles tandem. Last time out the pair fell to Angela DiPastina and Christina Keesey of Ohio State, 8-3.
Next Up
Michigan State travels to Madison, Wis. for the Big Ten Championships. Play begins Thursday, April 23 and continues through Sunday, April 26.
Players Mentioned
