Michigan
Northwestern
Wolverines Drop Regular-Season Finale at Northwestern
4/20/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
EVANSTON, Ill. -- The University of Michigan women's tennis team claimed the doubles point was unable to win a singles matches against No. 23-ranked Northwestern Sunday (April 20), losing its regular-season finale by a 6-1 score at the Vandy Christie Tennis Center. The Wolverines (12-8, 5-5 Big Ten) suffered their third straight conference defeat and their sixth consecutive loss to the Wildcats (16-8, 8-2 Big Ten).
Michigan came out of the blocks strong and claimed the doubles point against Northwestern with wins at No. 2 and No. 3. The Wildcats gained an 8-2 victory from eighth-ranked Christelle Grier and Jessica Rush over the Wolverines' pairing of sophomores Michelle DaCosta (Huber Heights, Ohio/Wayne HS) and Leanne Rutherford (Calgary, Alberta/National Sports School) at No. 1. Junior Chrissie Nolan (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South HS) and freshman Debra Streifler (Highland Park, Ill./Highland Park HS) struck back quickly to change the momentum in U-M's favor, posting an 8-3 victory against Jamie Peisel and Andrea Yung at No. 2. The Wolverines clinched the doubles point as senior co-captain Joanne Musgrove (LaSalle, Ontario/Sandwich HS) and junior Kim Plaushines (Oconomowoc, Wis./Kettle Moraine HS) registered a 9-7 victory against Ruth Barnes and Connie Chiang at No. 3.
The Wildcats rallied in singles and put the match away with straight-set victories at No. 2 through No. 5. U-M's best opportunities for a singles point came at No. 1 and No. 6, but the Wolverines were unable to come away with wins. DaCosta had her five-match winning streak at the top singles slot end with a 6-0, 4-6, 6-1 loss to sixth-ranked Grier. Stacy Kokx claimed a victory in a super tiebreaker at No. 6, winning the match 5-7, 6-2, 10-6 against Streifler.
The Wolverines return to the state of Illinois next week, Thursday through Sunday (April 24-27), for the Big Ten Conference Championship at the University of Illinois. The team competition will be played at the Atkins Tennis Center in Champaign.
Following are match-by-match results:
Singles
No. 1 -- #6 Christelle Grier (NU) d. Michelle DaCosta, 6-0, 4-6, 6-1
No. 2 -- #62 Jessica Rush (NU) d. Chrissie Nolan, 6-1, 6-1
No. 3 -- Jamie Peisel (NU) d. Leanne Rutherford, 6-2, 6-0
No. 4 -- #104 Andrea Yung (NU) d. Kavitha Tipirneni, 6-2, 6-3
No. 5 -- Ruth Barnes (NU) d. Kim Plaushines, 6-0, 6-1
No. 6 -- Stacy Kokx (NU) d. Debra Streifler, 5-7, 6-2, 10-6
Doubles
No. 1 -- #8 Grier/Rush (NU) d. DaCosta/Rutherford, 8-2
No. 2 -- Nolan/Streifler (U-M) d. Peisel/Yung, 8-3
No. 3 -- Plaushines/Joanne Musgrove (U-M) d. Barnes/Connie Chiang, 9-7
Contact: David Ablauf (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
