Friday, February 24
East Lansing, Mich.
10 AM
Michigan State University
vs
Xavier
Women’s Tennis Returns to Action against Xavier, Chicago State and Illinois State
2/23/2023 12:45:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Spartans Host Musketeers, Cougars on Friday, Challenge Redbirds on Sunday
EAST LANSING, Mich. – For the first time since the Michigan State campus community suffered a tragic loss of life on Monday, Feb. 13, the Spartan women's tennis program returns to the courts for a trio of matches this weekend inside the MSU Indoor Tennis Center.
The Green & White open the weekend with a doubleheader on Friday, Feb. 24, as the Spartans challenge the Xavier Musketeers at 10 a.m. before playing the Chicago State Cougars at 2 p.m. MSU closes the weekend out at home on Sunday, Feb. 26 with an 11 a.m. match against the Illinois State Redbirds. The MSU Indoor Tennis Center will also play host to a neutral site match between Xavier and Illinois State on Saturday, Feb. 25.
#UNMATCHED APPROACH
Sophomore Liisa Vehvilainen continues to roll in both doubles and singles play, extending her overall win streak to eight after ratting off four straight victories in both disciplines. The Turku, Finland, native remains tied for the overall win lead at MSU with Nicole Conard and Juliette Nask at nine victories in singles. Vehvilainen also owns a team-leading 5-1 dual match record, followed closely by Conard who stands at 4-2. In doubles, Ayshe Can and Vehvilainen continue to pace the Spartan squad with an impressive 9-4 start to the 2022-23 campaign.
LAST MATCH OUT
The Spartans won their third straight dual match and utilized a dominant performance in the singles competition to topple the Marquette Golden Eagles by a 6-1 score on Sunday inside the MSU Indoor Tennis Center. Michigan State opened Sunday's matinee with a solid showing in the doubles competition, as the Green & White utilized wins at the bookend positions to take the opening point of the match. The Spartans then rattled off wins on five of six singles courts to finalize the dominant 6-1 team result. MSU used a pair of straight-set victories from Vehvilainen at the top line over Julieanne Bou (6-2, 6-1), and Tia Mukherjee at the No. 6 spot to clinch the match (7-5, 7-6(3)).
RANKING UPDATE
The Intercollegiate Tennis Association released their first computerized rankings of the 2023 dual match season on Tuesday, February 21. The Spartans made their season debut in the rankings at the No. 74 position nationally in the ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings sponsored by Tennis-Point. MSU joins 10 other Big Ten programs in the first national computer rankings of the season, including a pair of opponents in Ohio State (#2) and Michigan (#3) that rank inside the top-three.
THIS WEEKEND'S OPPONENTS
Head Coach Doug Matthews guides Xavier into Friday morning's contest maintaining a 4-4 overall record. All four losses for the Musketeers have come on the road against power five opposition, including road losses to three Big Ten challengers in Penn State, Indiana and Purdue. Xavier has only played two home matches to date, downing Northern Kentucky in a 7-0 result before defeating James Madison, 4-3, in their last match out.
Chicago State and head coach Jack Burton have already completed 13 matches through this point in the season, managing a 6-7 overall record. The Cougars own a 4-2 ledger in home contests, but have dropped five of their seven true road matches. Chicago State is fresh off a Wednesday doubleheader at home on Feb. 22, falling, 3-4, to UIC before defeating Holy Cross (Ind.) in a 7-0 outing later in the day.
The Illinois State Redbirds and head coach Maja Kovacek enter their weekend in East Lansing with a 5-1 record heading into their Saturday matchup with Xavier at the MSU Indoor Tennis Center. The Redbirds remain undefeated at home in Bloomington, defeating Eastern Illinois, UIS and Northern Illinois in a trio of 6-1 results. In true road matches, Illinois State defeated Milwaukee on the road, 5-2, dropped their only match of the season at Illinois, 2-5, and dominated Chicago State on Feb. 19 in a 7-0 result.
MATCHDAY CENTRAL
All matches will be played at the MSU Indoor Tennis Center, with doors set to open one hour before the start of each match. Free admission is available for all fans. Fans are encouraged to park in Lot 98 immediately adjacent to the tennis center, or utilize the Capital Area Transportation Authority (CATA) bus system. Take bus route 38 and get off at the Westbound South Crescent before South Middlevale stop. The tennis center is a four-minute walk from that point.
All of this weekend's matches will be streamed live via Playsight. Fans are encouraged to click here to tune in. Additionally, live scoring for the match between the Spartans and Golden Eagles will be available by clicking here. As always, fans are encouraged to follow along on social media for a look behind the scenes at the MSU matchday experience.
FOLLOW THE SPARTANS
Visit MSUSpartans.com for more information on Michigan State women's tennis. Fans can keep up to date with the Spartan women's tennis team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter by following @MSU_WTennis.
The Green & White open the weekend with a doubleheader on Friday, Feb. 24, as the Spartans challenge the Xavier Musketeers at 10 a.m. before playing the Chicago State Cougars at 2 p.m. MSU closes the weekend out at home on Sunday, Feb. 26 with an 11 a.m. match against the Illinois State Redbirds. The MSU Indoor Tennis Center will also play host to a neutral site match between Xavier and Illinois State on Saturday, Feb. 25.
#UNMATCHED APPROACH
Sophomore Liisa Vehvilainen continues to roll in both doubles and singles play, extending her overall win streak to eight after ratting off four straight victories in both disciplines. The Turku, Finland, native remains tied for the overall win lead at MSU with Nicole Conard and Juliette Nask at nine victories in singles. Vehvilainen also owns a team-leading 5-1 dual match record, followed closely by Conard who stands at 4-2. In doubles, Ayshe Can and Vehvilainen continue to pace the Spartan squad with an impressive 9-4 start to the 2022-23 campaign.
LAST MATCH OUT
The Spartans won their third straight dual match and utilized a dominant performance in the singles competition to topple the Marquette Golden Eagles by a 6-1 score on Sunday inside the MSU Indoor Tennis Center. Michigan State opened Sunday's matinee with a solid showing in the doubles competition, as the Green & White utilized wins at the bookend positions to take the opening point of the match. The Spartans then rattled off wins on five of six singles courts to finalize the dominant 6-1 team result. MSU used a pair of straight-set victories from Vehvilainen at the top line over Julieanne Bou (6-2, 6-1), and Tia Mukherjee at the No. 6 spot to clinch the match (7-5, 7-6(3)).
RANKING UPDATE
The Intercollegiate Tennis Association released their first computerized rankings of the 2023 dual match season on Tuesday, February 21. The Spartans made their season debut in the rankings at the No. 74 position nationally in the ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings sponsored by Tennis-Point. MSU joins 10 other Big Ten programs in the first national computer rankings of the season, including a pair of opponents in Ohio State (#2) and Michigan (#3) that rank inside the top-three.
THIS WEEKEND'S OPPONENTS
Head Coach Doug Matthews guides Xavier into Friday morning's contest maintaining a 4-4 overall record. All four losses for the Musketeers have come on the road against power five opposition, including road losses to three Big Ten challengers in Penn State, Indiana and Purdue. Xavier has only played two home matches to date, downing Northern Kentucky in a 7-0 result before defeating James Madison, 4-3, in their last match out.
Chicago State and head coach Jack Burton have already completed 13 matches through this point in the season, managing a 6-7 overall record. The Cougars own a 4-2 ledger in home contests, but have dropped five of their seven true road matches. Chicago State is fresh off a Wednesday doubleheader at home on Feb. 22, falling, 3-4, to UIC before defeating Holy Cross (Ind.) in a 7-0 outing later in the day.
The Illinois State Redbirds and head coach Maja Kovacek enter their weekend in East Lansing with a 5-1 record heading into their Saturday matchup with Xavier at the MSU Indoor Tennis Center. The Redbirds remain undefeated at home in Bloomington, defeating Eastern Illinois, UIS and Northern Illinois in a trio of 6-1 results. In true road matches, Illinois State defeated Milwaukee on the road, 5-2, dropped their only match of the season at Illinois, 2-5, and dominated Chicago State on Feb. 19 in a 7-0 result.
MATCHDAY CENTRAL
All matches will be played at the MSU Indoor Tennis Center, with doors set to open one hour before the start of each match. Free admission is available for all fans. Fans are encouraged to park in Lot 98 immediately adjacent to the tennis center, or utilize the Capital Area Transportation Authority (CATA) bus system. Take bus route 38 and get off at the Westbound South Crescent before South Middlevale stop. The tennis center is a four-minute walk from that point.
All of this weekend's matches will be streamed live via Playsight. Fans are encouraged to click here to tune in. Additionally, live scoring for the match between the Spartans and Golden Eagles will be available by clicking here. As always, fans are encouraged to follow along on social media for a look behind the scenes at the MSU matchday experience.
FOLLOW THE SPARTANS
Visit MSUSpartans.com for more information on Michigan State women's tennis. Fans can keep up to date with the Spartan women's tennis team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter by following @MSU_WTennis.
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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