Michigan State University
Wildcat Invite
Doubles Fall in Semis, Trouillot Earns Third
9/27/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Day One Results | Day Two Results | Day Three Results
EVANSTON, Ill. - The Michigan State women's tennis team completed its opening weekend of the fall on Sunday, Sept. 27, at the Wildcat Invite in Evanston, Illinois. Junior Athena Trouillot battled through the White Main Draw for a third-place finish, as a pair of doubles teams made it to the semifinals.
"This weekend went well for us for the most part," said head coach Simone Jardim. "We looked better in singles with the more matches we got throughout the tournament. It was a better day with a good finish."
Trouillot finished the White Main Draw with third-place honors after posting a mark of 3-1 throughout the weekend. After dropping her second match on Saturday to Pitt's Callie Frey, Trouillot bounced back to knock off Northwestern's Jillian Rooney in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2.
In the back draws of singles play, freshman Davina Nguyen and sophomore Aslina Chua notched victories on the third day of competition. Nguyen became the fourth Spartan in the tournament to beat Pitt's Gabriela Rezende, taking the match in straight sets, 6-2, 6-2. Chua finished singles with wins on the final two days, fighting Toni Ormund of Ball State through three sets on Sunday for a 1-6, 6-2, 6-2 victory.
"The best thing about this weekend was the doubles play, especially after last year," Jardim said. "We are working on just getting comfortable and doing the right things."
Both of MSU's doubles pairings playing in the semifinals of the main draw fell on day three. Sophomore Lexi Baylis and junior Erin Faulkner were unable to hold off the No. 34-ranked duo of Maddie Lipp and Alex Chatt of Northwestern. Sophomore Allie Baer and freshman Emily Metcalf stumbled late, dropping its semifinal contest, 6-3, to DePaul's Ana Vladutu and Rebeca Mitrea.
The combination of Nguyen and Trouillot continued to find success on Sunday, beating the Wildcats' Rooney and Lee Or, 6-3. Baer and Metcalf came back from their semifinal loss to defeat DePaul's Jarret Fisher and Marina Cozac, 6-3.
"We will continue to set higher goals for ourselves, and our standards are pretty high now," said Jardim. "We are pushing each other more and more, and will be ready to play at these tournaments. We are capable and very good, but need to keep making each other better."
The Spartans are back in action next weekend at the Purdue Invite in West Lafayette, Indiana. The tournament opens on Friday, Oct. 2, and continues through Sunday, Oct. 4.
Players Mentioned
