Weekly Release #12

Upcoming Schedule
Saturday, April 20 -- vs. Purdue (Varsity Tennis Center), 11 a.m.
Sunday, April 21 -- vs. Indiana (Varsity Tennis Center), 11 a.m.
Thu-Sun., April 25-28 -- at Big Ten Championship (Bloomington, Ind.)

Regular Season Ends at Home
The University of Michigan women's tennis team (10-9, 3-5 Big Ten) concludes the 2002 dual match and Big Ten Conference season with two home matches this weekend. The Wolverines host Purdue Saturday (April 20) and Indiana Sunday (April 21) at the Varsity Tennis Center. The matches will begin at 11 a.m. each day and will be played outdoors weather permitting.

Final Home Matches for Jen Vaughn
Prior to Sunday's match with Indiana, the women's tennis program will honor the efforts of senior Jen Vaughn (Jefferson City, Mo./Lawrence HS). Vaughn is a two-time Academic All-Big Ten Conference selection and a four-time U-M Athletic Academic Achievement recipient who is graduating this semester with a general studies degree from the College of Literature, Science and the Arts. On the court, Vaughn has been an integral part of both the singles and doubles lineups, but injuries hampered her participation this season. She compiled a career-best 16 singles wins and 12 doubles victories last season.

Dominant Doubles
The women's netters have been a dominating doubles team this season, winning the doubles point on 14 occasions. The Wolverines have lost the team point just five times all season, with three of those coming in conference play. Michigan has swept all three matches on five occasions this year and has compiled a 50-33 doubles record (.602 winning percentage).

Home Cooking
U-M has made the Varsity Tennis Center a difficult place to win this season, recording a 7-4 overall record at the facility this season. Three of the four losses have come to top-20 ranked teams, with the other setback coming to No. 32-ranked Wisconsin. The seven overall wins by the Wolverines this season are the most tallied in a season by the women's program, with the previous high being six victories set during the 1997 Big Ten title season (6-0 mark). U-M is in the midst of a four-match winning streak and is halfway to the school mark of eight straight wins to open the facility (6-0 in 1996-97 and 2-0 to start the 1997-98 season). Michigan has compiled a 30-24 record in the six-year-old facility, not including a 1-1 mark when hosting the 2000 Big Ten Championship.

Nolan and Tipirneni Continue Impressive Play
Sophomores Chrissie Nolan (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South HS) and Kavitha Tipirneni (Galloway, Ohio/Hilliard Darby HS) enter the final week of the regular season looking to collect their 15th doubles win of the season. Nolan and Tipirneni have compiled a 14-4 overall record together and are 13-3 in dual match competition at the No. 3 slot. They lead the team in dual match wins (13), dual match winning percentage (.813) and conference victories (7-1 mark). Nolan and Tipirneni have equaled their season high with four consecutive wins and have recorded victories in eight of their last nine matches.

Nolan Eyes 20 Doubles Wins
With victories in both doubles matches this weekend, Chrissie Nolan would become the first player since the 1996-97 season to reach the 20 doubles wins in a season. Nolan leads the squad with 18 overall wins (18-6 mark), with four players close behind at 16 victories. Nolan's partner, Kavitha Tipirneni, has a 16-8 overall record, with the freshman duo of Michelle DaCosta (Huber Heights, Ohio/Wayne HS) and Leanne Rutherford (Calgary, Alberta/National Sports School) tallying 16-13 marks. Sophomore Kim Plaushines (Oconomowoc, Wis./Kettle Moraine HS) has compiled a career-best 16 wins this season (16-10 mark).

Two Wolverines Seek 15th Singles Wins
Two members of the team, Michelle DaCosta and junior Joanne Musgrove (LaSalle, Ontario/Sandwich HS), enter the final week of the regular season needing one singles victory to reach 15 this season. DaCosta has compiled a 14-13 overall singles record this season, including a 10-9 dual match mark and a 4-4 record against conference opposition. DaCosta has played the last 12 dual matches at the No. 2 spot in the lineup after seeing action at No. 3 and No. 4. Musgrove returned from injury to play against Iowa, recording one of the team's two singles victories with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Gloria Okino at No. 6. Musgrove has a 14-9 overall record this season and has a 7-6 mark in dual matches. She needs one victory to reach 50 in her career (49-28).

Duprez Cruising
Junior Jen Duprez (Westhampton, N.Y./Westhampton Beach HS) is in the midst of her best season as a Wolverine, recording career highs in both singles and doubles victories. Duprez leads the team in singles victories (16-9), dual match wins (11-5) and regional victories (11-6) and is tied for top honors with four conference wins (4-3). She has collected singles wins in seven of her last eight matches, including a come-from-behind 0-6, 7-5, 6-1 win against Iowa's Pascale Veraverbeke (April 14). Duprez has a 41-31 career singles record and is 25-18 in dual matches.

In doubles competition, Duprez has a career-best 13 overall wins (13-11). She has teamed with Kim Plaushines at No. 2 doubles to record an 11-7 record and an 8-5 dual match mark. They have compiled a 4-3 conference record and have tallied wins in seven of their last nine matches.

Big Ten Championship Looming
Following its match with Indiana Sunday (April 21), the women's tennis team will prepare for the upcoming Big Ten Championship hosted by Indiana at the IU Tennis Courts in Bloomington. The four-day team tournament begins on Thursday, April 25, and concludes with the championship match Sunday, April 28.

Contact: David Ablauf (734) 763-4423