Last week, Northwestern defeated four consecutive teams, including No. 2 Baylor and No. 17 Texas. But the Wildcats are not ready to stop there.
Top-ranked NU returns to the courts this weekend for a chance to knock off another pair of Big Ten opponents. They host No. 29 Ohio State on Saturday and No. 28 Indiana on Sunday. Both duals will be played at the Combe Tennis Center. The Cats enter the weekend with a perfect 5-0 conference record and a 17-1 overall record.
Aside from NU, Indiana and Ohio State are the top teams in the Big Ten. The Buckeyes, ranked third in the conference, boast a 16-3 overall record and are 3-1 in conference play. Indiana, second in the Big Ten, has a flawless 4-0 conference record and is 15-4 overall. Before falling to No. 20 Notre Dame last weekend, the Hoosiers had won eight duals in a row.
“We know that Indiana and Ohio State are both good teams and they’re having good seasons in the Big Ten,” junior Georgia Rose said. “They are definitely teams we’re not going to overlook.”
Although the Cats know better than to take their opponents lightly, they feel prepared going into the weekend.
“We feel really confident, especially after our success last week,” freshman Maria Mosolova said. “We’re just trying to work on our games during the Big Ten matches. We always expect them to play well.”
The Cats go into the weekend playing at the top of their game and are picking up awards along the way.
Sophomore Lauren Lui, No. 42 in the nation, earned the Big Ten Women’s Tennis Athlete of the Week Award Wednesday, the second such honor of her career. Lui joins Mosolova, Rose, and sophomore Suzie Matzenauer as Cats who have earned that distinction this season.
Lui seized the award after a perfect 4-0 record in both singles and doubles play last week. She boasts an impressive 15-1 overall singles mark and a perfect 14-0 record at the No. 4 singles spot.
Despite her individual success, Lui focused on the same mantra the Cats have followed all season: teamwork and hard work.
“I am more happy that our team played so well this weekend,” Lui said. “We really pulled out some good wins, beating Texas and Baylor; it was a good confidence boost for us. We just have to keep working hard, because all the other teams are working hard. It’s like we have a big target on our back.”
While NU has been the top-ranked team for six consecutive weeks and has won 11 straight duals, the team has not lost its focus. Rose noted the team did not do a good job last year of maintaining a high level of play throughout the season. This year, they are determined to avoid that mistake and are continuing to improve and stay focused.
“I think (coach) Claire (Pollard) does a really good job of reminding us of what we need to do,” Rose said. “It’s great that we’ve been No. 1 for the last few weeks, but at the same time we have to be ready for anything that can happen in May.”
Winning 11 straight duals, including a 5-2 win against then-No. 2 Baylor, is a good indicator that the team’s hard work is paying off. This weekend will be another test for the Cats on their way to the NCAA tournament in May.
“We’re really happy with the level we’ve sustained for the whole season,” Rose said. “We have to keep that level up and keep improving.”
