April 8, 2018
MINNEAPOLIS, Mn.-- The Penn State women's tennis team took on the Minnesota Gophers today, in Big Ten action. The Gophers came out on top 5-2 over the Nittany Lions, in a closely contested conference match.
In doubles, the team went 0-2 to drop the point to the Gophers. Shannon Hanley (Kensington, Md.) and Samantha Smith (Cary, N.C.) had their match against Caitlyn Merzbacher and Mehvish Safdar go unfinished, but the duo was up 5-4 when play ended. Frederikke Svarre (Copenhagen, Denmark) and Olivia Rohrbacher (Sandusky, Ohio) fell to Tina Kreinis and Annemarie Emme, 6-4. Bennett Dunn (Orlando, Fla.) and Gabby O'Gorman (Gunnedah, N.S. Wales, Australia) fell to River Hart and Caroline Ryba, 6-3.
In singles, the team went 2-4, pushing three matches to a third set. O'Gorman dropped her match to Ryba, 6-3, 6-3. Svarre fell to Kreinis, 6-0, 6-1. Hanley was victorious over Emme, in one of the matches that went to a third set, 6-3, 6-7, 1-0 (10-6). Smith pushed her match to a third set also, coming out on top of Barbara Mancera, 6-7, 6-1, 7-5. Dunn fell to Merzbacher, 6-4, 7-6. Hanna Wikberg (Stockholm, Sweden) was locked in a tight match with Cammy Frei, pushing her match to a third set where she ultimately fell 7-5, 5-7, 1-0 (10-4).
"Today's match had a lot of similarities to Friday's match against Wisconsin," said head coach Chris Cagle. "We fought hard in many spots and as a result, we had chances against a much improved Minnesota team. That being said, it was a tough loss. We are good enough to win these matches and need to bring it across the board to win. Next weekend will be a good test going to Purdue and Indiana."
Overall, the Nittany Lions are now 7-11 and 2-5 in the Big Ten. The team will continue on the road next weekend, to take on Purdue on Friday, Apr. 13 at 3:00 p.m. and Indiana on Sunday, Apr. 15 at 11:00 a.m.
Keep up with the Penn State women's tennis team at GoPSUsports.com. For continued updates throughout the year, make sure to `like' our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewten and follow our twitter @pennstateWTEN.
Doubles Final:
- Merzbacher/Safdar (UMN) vs. Hanley/Smith (PSU) 4-5, unfinished
- Kreinis/Emme (UMN) def. Svarre/Rohrbacher (PSU) 6-4
- Hart/Ryba (UMN) def. Dunn/O'Gorman (PSU) 6-3
Singles Final:
- Caroline Ryba (UMN) def. Gabby O'Gorman (PSU) 6-3, 6-3
- Tina Kreinis (UMN) def. Frederikke Svarre (PSU) 6-0, 6-1
- Shannon Hanley (PSU) def. Annemarie Emme (UMN) 6-3, 6-7, 1-0 (10-6)
- Samantha Smith (PSU) def. Bita Mancera (UMN) 6-7, 7-6, 7-5
- Caitlyn Merzbacher (UMN) def. Bennett Dunn (PSU) 6-4, 7-6
- Cammy Frei (UMN) def. Hanna Wikberg (PSU) 7-5, 5-7, 1-0 (10-4)