Michigan
Northwestern
Michigan Sweeps Season Series from No. 7 Northwestern
4/11/2021 6:28:00 PM | Women's Tennis
» Michigan rallied after dropping the doubles point, getting singles wins from Jaedan Brown, Chiara Lommer, Kari Miller and Gala Mesochoritou.
» The match was delayed nearly an hour as the teams tried to play outdoors to start, but the courts could not be dried.
» U-M can clinch the Big Ten championship with a win next weekend.
Site: Evanston, Ill. (Combe Tennis Center)
Result: #19 Michigan 4, #7 Northwestern 3
Records: U-M (14-2, 14-1 B1G), NU (17-3, 13-2 B1G)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, April 18 -- vs. Michigan State (Varsity Tennis Center), 2 p.m.
EVANSTON, Ill. -- The No. 19-ranked University of Michigan women's tennis team rallied after dropping the doubles point, winning four singles matches to keep pace in the Big Ten championship race in a 4-3 win at No. 7 Northwestern on Sunday afternoon (April 11) at the Combe Tennis Center.
Northwestern got off to the early lead, getting the doubles point behind wins at Nos. 1 and 2.
Michigan needed to answer in singles action and the Wolverines were up for it, winning four first sets to set the tone.
The first three matches off court happened within minutes of each other, as U-M won the first two before NU answered with a win at No. 6 to knot the match at 2.
Freshman Jaedan Brown was the first player off the court, getting a 6-3, 6-2 win at No. 4 for Michigan's first point of the day. She raced out to a 3-0 lead in the first set before hanging on for the 6-3 win. Brown was in a 2-0 hole in the second set before ripping off six straight games for a 6-2 win. In the final game, Brown came in for the volley winner that got past Briana Crowley to break and seal the win.
Graduate student Chiara Lommer quickly followed with a 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 2 to stake Michigan a 2-1 lead. Lommer broke early in the first set and fought off a couple of break points to keep the break at 4-2 in the first. It was all Lommer from there, as she did not drop a game the rest of the way in the straight-set win.
Northwestern quickly evened the score moments later with a straight-set win at No. 6.
With a flurry of finishes within several minutes, the remaining matches settled in for nearly an hour before another result.
Freshman Kari Miller accounted for Michigan's third point of the day behind a 6-3, 7-6 (4) win at No. 1. Miller struck quickly in the first set, going up 2-0 and eventually up 5-1. She dropped two straight games but came through in the next one to wrap up the 6-3 win. After battling back from a 4-2 hole in the second, Miller tied it up at 4-4 and held in the next game for a 5-4 lead. After an NU hold, the players exchanged breaks to send the match to a breaker. It was all Miller in the tiebreaker as she raced out to a 5-2 lead en route to the 7-4 win.
With Michigan needing just one more win to clinch the team match, the remaining two matches headed to third sets.
It was freshman Gala Mesochoritou who came through for the Maize and Blue, gutting out a 6-7 (2),6-4, 6-4 win at No. 5 for the fourth point of the day. She raced out to an early first-set lead but lost in a breaker to fall behind. She took advantage of a late break in the second, going up 5-4 and serving out the set in the ensuing game to force the third. It was much of the same in the third set as Mesochoritou got the break she needed at 4-3 and backed it up on her serve for a 5-3 lead. Both players held over the next two games as Mesochoritou stayed perfect on the year and clinched the Michigan win.
Northwestern won the final match on court to provide the final margin.
The Wolverines conclude the regular season next Sunday (April 18), hosting Michigan State at the Varsity Tennis Center at 2 p.m. With a win, Michigan can clinch a share of the 2021 Big Ten championship.
Following are match-by-match results
Singles
No. 1 -- No. 43 Kari Miller (U-M) d. No. 65 Maria Shusharina (NU), 6-3, 7-6 (4)
No. 2 -- Chiara Lommer (U-M) d. Julie Byrne (NU), 6-2, 6-0
No. 3 -- No. 83 Clarissa Hand (NU) d. Andrea Cerdan (U-M), 5-7, 7-5, 7-6
No. 4 -- No. 105 Jaedan Brown (U-M) d. Briana Crowley (NU), 6-3, 6-2
No. 5 -- Gala Mesochoritou (U-M) d. Caroline Pozo (NU), 7-6 (2), 6-4, 6-4
No. 6 -- Christina Hand (NU) d. Nicole Hammond (U-M), 6-1, 6-2
Doubles
No. 1 -- Julie Byrne/Briana Crowley (NU) d. Chiara Lommer/Jaedan Brown (U-M), 6-1
No. 2 -- Christina Hand/Clarissa Hand (NU) d. Kari Miller/Nicole Hammond (U-M), 6-2
No. 3 -- Gala Mesochoritou/Andrea Cerdan (U-M) vs. Hannah McColgan/Caroline Pozo (NU), 3-4 abandoned
Order of Completion: Doubles 1-2, Singles 4-2-6-1-5-3
Players Mentioned
