The Northwestern women’s tennis team dominated the early rounds of the conference tournament before winning the championship round in dramatic fashion for the Big Ten title Sunday.
Last year’s team cruised early before facing and then overcoming a severe challenge in the final to capture the conference championship.
So now that two NU teams have won the Big Ten title, the question arises: Which team is better?
“This year is,” junior Colleen Cheng said. “We have a lot more experience and a lot more confidence gained from where we stood nationally.”
The complete answer will depend on the performance of this year’s team in the upcoming NCAA tournament.
A year ago the young Cats, under first-year head coach Claire Pollard, targeted the Sweet 16 as their goal. But NU lost in the second round to No. 11 Arizona State.
“Last year was a learning experience as we were getting used to Claire,” Cheng said. “We definitely thought we had a good chance, but we got a hard draw.”
When the Cats started practice in the fall, the team targeted a repeat appearance in the NCAAs and again hoped to advance to the Sweet 16 .
“Last year, we were always striving and hadn’t proved anything,” senior Jennifer Lutgert said. “This year there was a more expecting feeling. We knew we had a team that could win the Big Ten and have success nationally.”
There are many reasons to expect NU to meet and possibly exceed its expectations. Last year, the Cats were ranked as high as No. 22 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings and finished with a 19-5 record. This year, NU ascended to as high as No. 10 in early March and currently sits at No. 17 with a 22-4 record.
The Cats sought challenging teams that would prepare them for the NCAAs. Last year, NU never defeated a higher-ranked team, while this year the team held its own, defeating No. 5 Mississippi and No. 14 South Carolina.
“It’s definitely positive and helps,” Lutgert said of the non-conference schedule. “There are about five top teams and then everyone else and a lot of times the rankings aren’t precise because what matters is what happens on the day. And we know we can win on any day.”
HOME OR AWAY: The Cats will gather today at Welsh-Ryan Arena and see the NCAA draw revealed on a satellite feed. NU is already guaranteed a spot in the field of 64 since it won the Big Ten tournament.
The Cats will learn who they play and where. Pollard has always maintained that she and the team would love the chance to host the first two rounds of the tournament — an honor reserved for the tournament’s top 16 teams.
However, as the day approaches, the players feel a more likely result will have them packing their bags to either Arizona, California or Oklahoma.
But in the end, the site of the first two rounds is irrelevant to the Cats as long as they are on the campus of Pepperdine — site of the final four rounds — on May 18.
“We are more than capable of coming out of our regional and making the Sweet 16 and getting to Pepperdine,” Lutgert said.
ONE FOR ALL: Lutgert single-handedly assured her team would remain Big Ten champions for the second year in a row after she prevailed in a four-hour marathon match that broke a 3-3 tie with Minnesota in the title match.
The team’s emotional and dramatic victory made the weekend memorable instead of disappointing. Everyone was all smiles during the team photo, the distribution of the Big Ten championship apparel, the trophy presentation and the flight home to Chicago.
“Everyone kept reminiscing as we were all wearing the shirts, hats and admiring the trophy,” Lutgert said.
Lutgert was awarded for her performance Sunday with the NU Female Athlete of the Week honor.
“I was pleased and grateful, but I thought the whole team deserved it,” Lutgert said.
