April 22, 2008
Big Ten Women's Tennis Championship Bracket
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; - Big Ten Women's Tennis Championship action begins Thursday in West Lafayette, Indiana with the Penn State women's tennis team (8-13, 2-8 Big Ten) facing No. 7 seed Iowa at 3 p.m. at the Schwartz Tennis Center.
"We are looking forward to playing Iowa again," said head coach Dawna Prevette. "We felt like we had chances in that match and didn't capitalize upon them. I am sure the team will be up to the challenge."
The Nittany Lions last faced the Hawkeyes March 30 at Iowa. Penn State fell 5-2 to Iowa with wins from senior Jenny Shular (Peachtree City, Ga.) and sophomore Lauren McCarthy (Danbury, Conn.). Shular defeated Alexis Dorr (6-1, 6-3) and McCarthy downed Kayla Berry (7-5, 6-4).
McCarthy and Shular have been two of Penn State's leaders this season. Shular, who is 15-14 overall, has won 10 of her last 13 matches and is currently on a three-game win streak. Throughout the season, Shular has played at the No. 1, 2, and 3 singles slots and is currently 7-2 at No. 3 singles. McCarthy is currently 14-12 overall and 6-3 in the Big Ten. She has won seven of her last nine matches.
Earlier this season, Penn State earned its first ranking since March of 2005 after a 4-3 defeat of then No. 74 Wisconsin on Feb. 17. The Nittany Lions were tied at No. 75 with Mississippi State in the Feb. 20 ITA poll. Most recently, Penn State defeated its second ranked team of the season with a 4-3 defeat of then No. 59 Michigan State.
Penn State's match against Iowa on Thursday will be the third match of the day. The winner will move on to face No. 2 seed Michigan at 2 p.m. on Friday.
- Nittany Lions -