As graduate student Britany Lau trailed 6-3, 4-1 in her match at the No. 3 singles slot Sunday against No. 30 Kansas, she looked over toward the No. 1 and No. 2 courts. Both of her teammates, freshmen Erica Jessel and Mika Dagan Fruchtman, were just one game away from losing their matches.
After losing the doubles point and with three players down double breaks in their second set, a 4-0 loss for Northwestern seemed plausible. Minutes later, Jessel and Dagan Fruchtman dropped their matches, giving the Jayhawks (6-4, 0-0 Big 12) a 3-0 lead.
Facing a double-break deficit, Lau got a break back. Still, as her opponent attempted to serve out the match at 6-3, 5-4, Lau broke at love with a lob, then forced a tiebreak that she won 7-5. Lau said she relied on her superior fitness en route to a 6-0 third set victory, giving the Wildcats (7-5, 0-0 Big Ten) their first point of the day.
“When Brit won her second-set tiebreaker, I think the hope started to set in,” coach Claire Pollard told The Daily. “I think that was probably the moment where I thought, ‘Okay, we keep staying with it, we might be okay.’”
In its final nonconference match, Pollard’s squad captured its three remaining singles matches at the No. 4, No. 5 and No. 6 singles spots to rumble back for a 4-3 win against the Jayhawks on the road. The match marked NU’s first comeback from down 3-0 since Feb. 17, 2018 against Washington.
At the No. 1 doubles spot, Lau and Dagan Fruchtman lost 6-3 after losing the deuce point at 5-3. Despite having a match point in the set’s tiebreak, NU’s No. 2 doubles pairing of Jessel and senior Sydney Pratt fell 7-6(6).
At No. 3 doubles, senior Kiley Rabjohns and sophomore Neena Feldman were down 1-0 in a tiebreak upon the doubles point’s conclusion.
In singles, the ’Cats dropped five first sets. Only Pratt, playing at No. 4, won her first set with a 7-6(2) victory. In order for NU to win the match, it needed Pratt to hold on and have three of its five other players come back from a set down.
“You can’t get ahead of yourself, either positively or negatively,” Pollard said. “You can be up 3-0 and lose matches, so staying in the moment and controlling what you can control is something I try and ask the girls to do.”
No. 1 Jessel and No. 2 Dagan Fruchtman’s matches were first to finish with 6-2, 6-1 and 6-3, 6-1 losses, respectively.
Lau earned NU’s first point with her 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-0 triumph.
“Getting any point on the board, especially when you’re down 3-0 — kind of with your back against the wall — is super important,” Lau said. “And especially for Kiley, who was playing right next to me, I saw how hard she was fighting.”
When Lau earned the ’Cats’ first point, Rabjohns, playing on the No. 5 court, was deadlocked at 5-5 in the third set. Pratt, who had dropped her second set, was up 2-1 in the third set, and No. 6 Feldman was set to serve out the second set at 5-2.
NU was just one point away from losing the match when Rabjohns and Kansas’ Jasmine Adams knotted at deuce down 5-6 in her third set. After an extended rally, Rabjohns’ opponent hit a forehand long, setting up a tiebreak. Rabjohns set up match point at 6-5 in the tiebreak and ripped a backhand down the line that her opponent returned wide.
Pollard said Rabjohns’ 0-6, 6-3, 7-6(5) win was defined by grit.
“You got to fight in college tennis,” Pollard said. “If you don’t know how to fight, you’re gonna have a really hard time. Everyone’s playing with so much pride for their program and pride for their team. I think Kiley epitomizes that about herself as a player. (I’m) just really proud of how much she had to fight and dig and compete, especially after a pretty rough first set.”
As Rabjohns won, Pratt was up 7-6(2), 4-6, 5-2. She served out the match at 5-3, sealing it with an inside-out forehand winner from the baseline. The match was left to Feldman one court to Pratt’s left.
Early in the third set, Feldman fell down a break at 3-1, but she remained confident.
“The only thing I was thinking was that it’s fine,” Feldman said. “I’ve done this before and just (had to) keep my composure.”
Feldman held serve twice and broke to take a 4-3 lead. With her opponent Anna Putilina serving down 3-4, 30-40, the Jayhawk double faulted, handing Feldman the opportunity to serve out the match.
Feldman did precisely that. On match point at 5-7, 6-3, 5-3, 40-15, Putilina’s shot hit the net cord. Feldman was able to track down the ball and return it, rushing the net. Putilina’s backhand went long. All nine of Feldman’s teammates rushed the court to mob her after the sophomore won five straight games to complete the team’s comeback.
“The coaches have talked about, ‘Someday, you’re gonna be at three-all, and you’re gonna clinch,’” Feldman said. “Having to experience that in real life is a whole different thing, and it’s pretty surreal.”
Email: charliespungin2027@u.northwestern.edu
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