Northwestern’s team season came to a dramatic end Friday at the hands of undefeated Stanford, but three players will remain in Palo Alto, Calif., to represent the Wildcats in the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships, which begin Wednesday.
Senior Maria Mosolova and the doubles team of freshman Nida Hamilton and sophomore Linda Abu Mushrefova qualified for the tournament. It is familiar territory for Mosolova. Ranked No. 10 in the nation in singles this year, Mosolova has made the Singles Championships the last three years, reaching the Round of 16 last year and the quarterfinals in the two years before.
For Hamilton and Abu Mushrefova, however, this is their first time competing in the Doubles Championships. The duo is ranked as the No. 12 team in the nation and will be looking to build off the success it enjoyed during the regular season. The pair compiled a 17-8 record playing at the No. 1 spot for the Cats and won the ITA Midwest Regional Doubles Championship in the fall.
Mosolova, who posted a sterling 22-3 record during regular season play, is hoping to bounce back after a disappointing straight-sets loss to No. 3 Hilary Barte in the team’s match against Stanford.
Mosolova will open play against No. 36 Anna Bartenstein from Miami, while Hamilton and Abu Mushrefova will begin their tournament run Thursday against the No. 26 pairing of Jordaan Sanford and Cristina Sanchez-Quintanar from Maryland.
Sanford and Sanchez-Quintanar went 18-4 at the No. 1 doubles for a Terrapins team that finished 13-10 but just 3-8 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. The pairing will be looking to rebound with an upset after losing its past two matches. Sanford and Sanchez-Quintanar are 3-3 against ranked opponents. Although they are the lower seed in their matchup with Hamilton and Abu Mushrefova, the duo has received plenty of recognition this year. Sanford was named ITA ACC Rookie of the Year, and Sanchez-Quintanar earned an All-ACC selection.
Bartenstein played at the No. 2 singles spot for the Hurricanes but earned her berth in the Singles Championship by winning nine consecutive matches to post a 19-4 record on the season. Bartenstein has a positive track record against the Cats, winning her match against Lauren Lui at the No. 3 singles spot in straight sets in the NCAA Championships last year. Bartenstein was also part of a doubles squad that topped Mosolova and Elena Chernyakova in that same matchup. Miami eliminated NU from postseason play last season with a 4-1 victory in the Round of 16.
