Feb. 19, 2009
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; - For their second consecutive weekend at home, the Penn State women's tennis team (2-5) is hosting the Oklahoma Sooners Friday at 5 p.m. and the Purdue Boilermakers Sunday at 11 a.m. at the Penn State Indoor Tennis Center. Free pizza will be served between doubles and singles competition on Friday, and admission to both matches is free.
"We are happy to be at home again and looking forward to our first conference match of the season," said head coach Dawna Prevette.
The Nittany Lions are coming off losses against Virginia Commonwealth and Denver last weekend. Against the No. 34 Rams, freshman Monika Mical (Stalowa Wola, Poland) shined in the No. 1 singles spot as she topped Ana Bara in a grueling three-set match, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3. In fifth singles, senior Dorothy Dohanics (Pittsburgh, Pa.) handled Olena Leonchuk in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2. On Sunday against Denver, Dohanics earned another No. 5 singles win over Kyla Iwinski, 6-4, 6-2, while junior Lauren McCarthy (Danbury, Conn.) held on to defeat Julia Bauregger in fourth singles, 6-2, 7-5.
This is the first meeting between the Penn State Nittany Lions and the Oklahoma Sooners. The Sooners are currently 2-2 after falling to No. 72 Wichita on Feb. 15, 5-2. They are led by first year head coach David Mullins, who was previously assistant coach at Northwestern. The Sooners are a young team, playing three freshmen and three sophomores. Sophomore Ana-Marie Constantinescu currently holds a 3-0 singles record and is ranked No. 98 in the nation.
The Nittany Lions open up Big Ten play on Sunday against Purdue. The Boilermakers are 3-4 after falling to No. 14 Notre Dame on Wednesday, 7-0. Stephanie Wooten, the team's only senior and last year's MVP, is currently 3-2 in first singles. Freshman Jennifer Rabot is 5-1 playing at the No. 4 singles spot. In their last meeting, Purdue edged Penn State 4-3 on April 5, 2008.
Following this weekend's matches, the Nittany Lions travel to Columbus on Saturday, Feb. 28 to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes at 5 p.m. The Lions return home the following weekend to face Wichita State on Saturday, March 7 at 1 p.m.