Northwestern women’s tennis Head Coach Claire Pollard left Friday’s exhibition match against Notre Dame with some thinking to do.
“I honestly do not have a clue what to do in doubles yet,” Pollard said.
The Wildcats won two of the four doubles matches they played on the day. The pairings of graduate student Britany Lau and freshman Maia Loureiro, as well as freshman Erica Jessel and junior Jennifer Riester, each won their sets, yet Pollard came away taking responsibility for not maximizing the talent at her disposal.
“Our doubles, I need to do better,” Pollard, entering her 27th year at the helm of ’Cats tennis, said. “I spent most of the singles thinking about doubles. I don’t know that I’m any of the wiser, but I’ll get there.”
NU’s success last season could be significantly attributed to its strength in doubles — the team went 21-6 in doubles points, meaning it usually only needed three singles wins to emerge victorious.
This year, the ’Cats will need to fill the void left behind by their graduating seniors — including both parts of last season’s No. 1 pairing, Christina Hand and Justine Leong, and four-time All-Big Ten player Maria Shusharina, who finished the dual season a remarkable 18-2 in doubles (topped only by her regular partner Lau, who went 19-1).
In the fall, NU found great success with the pairing of Lau and freshman Mika Dagan Fruchtman. Lau and Dagan Fruchtman reached the semifinals of both the ITA Midwest Regional and ITA Central Sectional, just one win short of qualifying for the 2024 NCAA Doubles Tournament.
Against Notre Dame, Pollard split the two up, opting to put Dagan Fruchtman alongside sophomore Neena Feldman. Yet, Pollard indicated that might not be a long-term decision.
“I like Brit and Mika,” Pollard said. “We know that’s good, so I don’t really need to see that anymore.”
On Saturday, Lau and Dagan Fruchtman were back together for another exhibition match against Colorado, losing a tight set 6-4. Feldman and senior Kiley Rabjohns won their set 6-1, while Jessel and senior Sydney Pratt won 6-4.
After that match, Pollard confirmed she was happier with the pairings this time around.
“That was much more like it,” she said.
On her singles lineup, Pollard was coy. When asked if she had an idea of how the lineup was starting to take shape, Pollard told The Daily: “I do, but I’m not gonna tell you. They need to hear it before you guys.”
With NU’s top three singles players all graduating at the end of last season, an opportunity has emerged for established players and freshmen alike to step up to a top spot.
Dagan Fruchtman is the biggest wildcard. The 21-year-old is a freshman in name only — having joined the ’Cats’ roster after completing mandatory service in the Israeli military, she has made appearances for her country’s Billie Jean King Cup team, the highest level of international team competition.
Dagan Fruchtman was not able to play singles on Friday or Saturday after spraining a ligament in her left foot in the fall, but indicated to The Daily she would be ready to go for next Saturday’s season opener against Butler.
After the Notre Dame match, Pollard played up Dagan Fruchtman’s importance to the team in singles.
“Mika didn’t play singles, which obviously changes our lineup dramatically,” she said.
On Saturday, Pollard made a similar proclamation about Rabjohns, who also only played doubles against Colorado. “We played without Mika and Kiley, so I mean that changes a lot of people’s roles,” she said.
Beyond those two, Pratt also figures to feature in the lineup after riding a strong start to last season at the No. 6 and No. 5 spots to moving up as high as No. 3. Lau is the team’s most experienced player, having played four years at Brown before transferring to NU last year and finishing with a 9-4 dual season singles record, mostly at No. 6.
“I think everyone’s always wanting to move up,” Lau said of the lineup. “I’m just focusing on myself and really being able to become the best player I can, and hopefully the results follow and the lineup follows.”
Lau mostly split the No. 6 spot last year with Feldman, who recovered from a singles loss against Notre Dame with an impressive 6-4, 6-4 win against Colorado’s Ema Bubalo.
Perhaps the star of the weekend was sophomore Autumn Rabjohns — Kiley’s sister — who won her singles matches on Friday and Saturday. Against Notre Dame, she won 7-5, 7-5 against Bianca Molnar, a five-star recruit freshman who she handily lost to in the fall.
Autumn Rabjohns sat out last year’s dual season, but said she has gained more clarity in her game in recent months.
“We’re always competing,” Autumn Rabjohns said. “Either way, I just wanna be the best teammate I can be — whether it’s down here or up there.”
When asked if Autumn Rabjohns was in her plans this time around, Pollard reiterated her policy of secrecy surrounding the lineup.
“I think all 10 players deserve a look,” she said.
Email: elikronenberg2027@u.northwestern.edu
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