Michigan
Illinois
Michigan Wins Second Straight Big Ten Tournament Title
4/28/2019 3:38:00 PM | Women's Tennis
» Michigan won its second straight Big Ten Tournament title, winning the first four singles matches off court.
» U-M got singles wins from Giulia Pairone, Kate Fahey, Brienne Minor and Alyvia Jones. With her win, Fahey has now tied Emina Bektas for first all-time at Michigan with 129 victories.
» Michigan has earned the Big Ten's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The selection show is set for Monday (April 29) at 6:30 p.m.
Site: Lincoln, Neb. (Dillon Tennis Center)
Event: Big Ten Tournament (Championship Match)
Result: #17 Michigan 4, Illinois 1
Records: U-M (18-5), Illinois (16-11)
Next U-M Event: Monday, April 29 -- NCAA Selection Show, 6:30 p.m.
LINCOLN, Neb. -- The University of Michigan rallied after dropping the doubles point, winning the first four singles matches off court to capture its second straight Big Ten Tournament title behind a 4-1 win over Illinois on Sunday afternoon (April 28) at the Dillon Tennis Center. Â
Illinois took the doubles point with wins at No. 3 and No. 2.
Michigan quickly turned the tide in singles, winning five first sets.
U-M put three points on the board in a five-minute span, beginning with junior Giulia Pairone at No. 2. Pairone took control early in both sets, pulling Michigan even with Illinois at one point each.
Moments later, senior Kate Fahey came through with a 6-1, 6-2 win at the top spot. Fahey raced to a 5-0 lead in the first set en route to the win. The senior went up a break at 3-2 in the second and did not look back in the win. The victory was the 129th of Fahey's career, tying her at No. 1 with Emina Bektas.
Senior Brienne Minor completed the flurry of Michigan wins, taking a 6-1, 6-4 win at No. 3 next to Fahey. After breezing to a first-set win, Minor had two match points on her serve at 5-3 but could not convert. Minor grabbed another three match points on the Illini serve, converting on her fourth match point of the afternoon for Michigan's third point.
Needing just one more point for the team win, sophomore Alyvia Jones won two straight games to tie her second set at 4. Jones broke Emilee Duong in the next game, giving her the chance to serve it out. Jones came through on her second match point as her serve out wide was just out of the reach of Duong to put the fourth point up for Michigan.
U-M earns the Big Ten's automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament. The selection show is set for Monday (April 29) at 6:30 p.m.
Singles
No. 1 -- No. 3 Kate Fahey (U-M) d. No. 44 Asuka Kawai (ILL), 6-1, 6-2
No. 2 -- No. 82 Giulia Pairone (U-M) d. Mia Rabinowitz (ILL), 6-2, 6-0
No. 3 -- No. 49 Brienne Minor (U-M) d. Sasha Belaya (ILL), 6-1, 6-4
No. 4 -- No. 48 Chiara Lommer (U-M) vs. Jaclyn Switkes (ILL), 5-7 abandoned
No. 5 -- Alyvia Jones (U-M) d. Emilee Duong (ILL), 6-0, 6-4
No. 6 -- Anca Craciun (U-M) vs. Daniela Pedraza Novak (ILL), 6-2, 3-5 abandoned
Doubles
No. 1 -- No. 32 Kate Fahey/Brienne Minor (U-M) vs. Daniela Pedraza Novak/Emilee Duong (ILL), 2-4 abandoned
No. 2 -- Jaclyn Switkes/Sasha Belaya (ILL) d. Giulia Pairone/Anca Craciun (U-M), 6-2
No. 3 -- Mia Rabinowitz/Asuka Kawai (ILL) d. Alyvia Jones/Lera Patiuk (U-M), 6-1
Order of Completion: Doubles 3-2, Singles 2-1-3-5
Players Mentioned
