The best season in program history has a chance to get even better.
Despite losing in the quarterfinals to California, the No. 1 Wildcats still have a chance to win two national titles.
Four players – freshman Maria Mosolova, junior Georgia Rose, sophomore Samantha Murray, and sophomore Lauren Lui – will compete for the singles title starting today in Tulsa, Okla. Rose and Lui also qualified to play in the doubles portion of the tournament.
“I think all of us just want to represent Northwestern in the best way we can, and obviously winning these two titles would do that,” junior Georgia Rose said.
Fifth-ranked nationally, Mosolova automatically qualified for the singles tournament. The Cats’ top player was awarded the No. 4 seed after a dominating first season. She will play Arizona State’s Kelcy McKenna in the first round.
Mosolova comes into the singles tournament boasting a 38-5 overall record. This year, she was selected to the All-Big Ten Team, named Midwest Player of the Year by the Indoor Tennis Association, and both Big Ten Freshman of the Year and Player of the Year.
Ranked 11th in the nation, Rose qualified for the singles portion of the tournament for the third consecutive season, and will play as a No. 9-16 seed this year. She faces UCLA’s Tracey Lin for the first time this season.
Rose enters the tournament with a 19-7 dual season and 35-11 overall record. She is coming off a strong performance against California, where she gave the Cats their only singles win. Last year, Rose reached the round of 16, losing to Stanford’s Lindsay Burdette in three sets.
“I feel I’m a little more prepared this year,” Rose said. “I think I’ve improved under Claire’s coaching within the last two years.”
Murray lost in the first round last year, but will have a chance to redeem herself as she received one of 48 unseeded at-large bids. Murray completed the dual season with a 20-6 record.
Lui enters the singles portion of the tournament on a 19-match winning streak. She was rewarded an at-large bid after posting a flawless 22-0 record from the No. 4 spot.
The Cats’ duo of Rose and Lui, ranked 19th in the nation, was selected for a shot to claim the doubles title. They finished the dual season with a perfect 16-0 record, and the overall season with a 22-1 record. They will face the top-seeded duo of Tracey Lin and Riza Zalameda of UCLA in the first round.
“I think we’re playing the kind of doubles we want to play,” Rose said. “Even in the match against California, we had a good win over their No. 1 team. I think we’re both playing well, and hopefully we’ll do well.”
Pollard said she thinks the biggest obstacle is getting over the disappointment of not winning the national title. She wants her team to understand that there are still two titles left to play for.
“I’d like to make sure we finish the season on a positive note,” she said. “It’s so easy to feel so disappointed from the match on Saturday when we really should be celebrating the best year ever in the history of the program.”
