IPFW Falls, 4-0, in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament

Friday, May 13

Evanston, IL

2:00 p.m.

Purdue Fort Wayne

Northwestern

IPFW team of Amy Recht and Ingrid Ballus had a 4-3 lead at the No. 1 position against the 11th ranked Linda Abu Mushrefova and Nida Hamilton before the doubles match was halted.

IPFW Falls, 4-0, in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament

5/13/2011 4:46:54 PM | Women's Tennis

IPFW/NU Results

Evanston, IL -The IPFW Mastodons fell 4-0 against the No. 16 seed Northwestern Wildcats, 4-0, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to end the 'Dons season at 27-4 overall on Friday afternoon in Evanston, Illinois.

NU advances to the second round of the tournament to face Notre Dame tomorrow at 1:00 p.m.

The Mastodons got off to a rough start after the Wildcats earned the doubles point for the 1-0 lead after picking up 8-1 wins at the No. 3 and 2 positions, respectively.

The IPFW duo of Raquel Vescovi and Yuka Kobayashi were defeated by NU's Elena Chernyakova and Brittany Wowchuk at the No. 3 spot. NU sealed the doubles point after Maria Mosolova and Belinda Niu claimed the No. 2 slot over IPFW's Caterina Kiefer and Alex Forsyth.

Despite the No. 1 doubles match being halted, the IPFW team of Amy Recht and Ingrid Ballus had a 5-3 lead over No. 12 Linda Abu Mushrefove and Nida Hamilton.

Due to a drop in temperature in Evanston after doubles action, singles were moved indoors from the Vandy Christie Tennis Center to the Combe Indoor Tennis Center.

The 'Cats claimed the singles positions in straight sets at Nos. 4, 6 and 5, respectively. NU picked up its first win in singles after Kiefer retired at the No. 4 slot after being down 3-0 against Kate Turvy. Forsyth lost 6-0, 6-0 at the No. 6 position to Stacey Lee , while Kobayashi suffered a 6-1, 6-0 loss to Mushrefova at the No. 5 slot.

Recht was down 6-2, 4-1 at the No. 1 position against No. 10 Mosolova before the match was halted, while NU's Niu led 6-2, 2-1 at No. 2 slot over Ballus and Wowchuk was ahead of IPFW's Vescovi at No. 3, 6-0, 5-2.

With the season ending for IPFW, the Mastodons lose three strong seniors, Ballus, Kobayashi and Recht, who have helped play a role in the success of the women's tennis program over the past few years.

After its most successful season, IPFW will now prepare for the 2011-2012 year. With only three starters returning for the 'Dons, next season will be a rebuilding year but still has the potential to continue to rewrite the record books for the program.

~Dons~

IPFW 0, Northwestern 4

Singles
1. #10 Maria Mosolova (NU) led Amy Recht (IPFW), 6-2, 4-1, uf
2. Belinda Niu (NU) led Ingrid Ballus (IPFW), 6-2, 2-1, uf
3. Brittany Wowchuk (NU) led Raquel Vescovi (IPFW), 6-0, 5-2, uf
4. Kate Turvy (NU) def. Caterina Kiefer (IPFW), 3-0, won by retirement
5. Linda Abu Mushrefova (NU) def. Yuka Kobayashi (IPFW), 6-1, 6-0
6. Stacey Lee (NU) def. Alex Forsyth (IPFW), 6-0, 6-0
Order of finish: 4, 6, 5

Doubles
1. Recht/Ballus (IPFW) led #12 Mushrefova/Hamilton (NU), 5-3, uf
2. Mosolova/Niu (NU) def. Kiefer/Forsyth (IPFW), 8-1
3. Chernyakova/Wowchuk (NU) def. Vescovi/Kobayashi (IPFW), 8-1
Order of finish: 3,2