No. 44 Northwestern lost a pair of road matches to No. 73 Michigan State and No. 3 Michigan, slumping to 3-5 in Big Ten play.
The Wildcats’ (10-10, 3-5 Big Ten) fifth conference loss of the season is the most they have suffered in coach Claire Pollard’s 27-year tenure at the helm of the program. NU previously finished with four Big Ten defeats in 2019, 2021 and 2023.
Senior Sydney Pratt and sophomore Neena Feldman each saw their undefeated singles seasons come to an end as the ’Cats’ already slim NCAA Tournament hopes took another major hit.
NU began its weekend road trip Friday afternoon in East Lansing, Michigan, where it lost 4-2 to the Spartans (11-8, 3-5 Big Ten).
In doubles, Pollard selected the same pairings that had won the doubles point in a 4-0 win over Oregon the previous weekend.
Graduate student Britany Lau and senior Kiley Rabjohns cruised to a 6-1 victory at the No. 3 spot, but NU was not able to capitalize in the other two matches. Both the No. 1 pairing of Pratt and freshman Erica Jessel and the No. 2 team of Feldman and freshman Mika Dagan Fruchtman lost heartbreaking 7-6(6) sets.
Pratt moved up to No. 3 in the singles lineup for the first time in conference play, while Dagan Fruchtman, who started the season at No. 1, slid down to No. 4.
The move backfired as Pratt accrued her first singles loss of the season in a convincing fashion, falling 6-2, 6-1. Meanwhile, Dagan Fruchtman’s dismal form continued as she lost 6-4, 6-3, her 10th consecutive singles defeat.
The ’Cats got victories from Feldman at No. 5 and Lau at No. 2, who won 6-1, 6-0 and 6-4, 6-3, respectively. However, after Jessel won the first set at No 1, she handily lost the next two en route to a 2-6, 6-1, 6-2 defeat.
The loss was just NU’s second to the Spartans this century, with the first coming in 2019.
The ’Cats returned to action Sunday to face the Wolverines (15-3, 8-0 Big Ten) in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The match got off to a similarly inauspicious start with NU dropping the doubles point. Dagan Fruchtman and Jessel, paired back together at No. 1, lost 6-3, while Lau and Rabjohns also lost 6-3 at No. 3.
Dagan Fruchtman exited the lineup for singles, as sophomore Autumn Rabjohns came in at No. 6. Kiley Rabjohns and Feldman each moved up a spot as a result.
Kiley Rabjohns was the first to finish, losing 6-3, 6-3 at No. 5. The Wolverines jumped out to a 3-0 lead after Lau lost 6-3, 7-5 at No. 2, before Pratt got NU on the board with a 6-4, 6-4 win at No. 3.
The ’Cats were on the brink of defeat after Jessel at No. 1 and Feldman at No. 4 each comfortably lost their first sets — however, both leveled their matches to keep NU alive.
Facing Michigan senior Julia Fliegner, the No. 3 player in the country, Jessel completed a stunning turnaround to emerge with a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 upset victory. It was the best win of her young career, with her only previous triumph over a ranked opponent coming against No. 84 Reece Carter of Washington.
At the time of Jessel’s win that cut the Wolverine lead to 3-2, both Feldman and Autumn Rabjohns were in the early stages of third sets with a chance to pull off an extraordinary comeback upset.
However, Feldman’s opponent pulled away in the decider, and the sophomore lost her first singles match of the season, 6-0, 5-7, 6-2. Autumn Rabjohns led 5-4 in the third set when Feldman’s defeat sealed victory for Michigan.
On Tuesday, both Pratt and Jessel entered the ITA Top 125 for the first time this season, clocking in at No. 99 and No. 122, respectively.
Pollard’s squad returns to Evanston next weekend to face No. 11 Ohio State and No. 42 Penn State at Combe Tennis Center.
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