March 21, 2012
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THIS WEEK
The University of Iowa women’s tennis team concludes a six-game road trip this weekend against a pair of nationally-ranked Big Ten foes. The Hawkeyes play in Evanston against No. 14 Northwestern on March 24 at 11 a.m. (CT) before squaring off against No. 50 Illinois at noon (CT) on March 25. Live scoring will be available on the women’s tennis schedule page at hawkeyesports.com.
MOLNAR GETS BACK ON TRACK
Senior Sonja Molnar posted a 2-0 record on the Hawkeyes spring break trip in Orlando, Fla. The Guelph, Ontario, native won 6-0, 6-1 against Central Florida’s Genevieve Lorbergs on March 16, before topping Kristin Norton of Harvard, 6-3, 6-2 on March 17. Molnar began dual play with a six-match win streak and owns a team-best 9-3 record.
FRESHMEN LEAD DOUBLES EFFORT
Freshmen Ellen Silver and Katie Zordani improved to 3-0 at the No. 2 position with two wins in Orlando. Silver and Zordani scored wins against Jenna Doerfler and Alexis Rodriguez (8-5) of Central Florida and Harvard’s Hannah Morrill and Kelly Whelan (8-6). Silver and Zordani are a team-best 7-2 in dual matches while playing at the No. 2 and 3 spots.
TAKING THE FIGHT OUT OF THE ILLINI
Senior Sonja Molnar owns a 3-1 career dual record against Illinois. Molnar defeated Amy Allin (6-2, 6-1) and Breanne Smutko (6-2, 6-1) as a junior in 2011 and topped No. 111 Leigh Finnegan (6-1, 6-0) as a freshman in 2009. Her lone loss came against No. 106 Megan Fudge (1-6, 3-6) in 2010 as a sophomore. Molnar has won 93 singles matches in her Hawkeye career.
SERIES RECORDS
Northwestern holds a 38-2 all-time advantage against the Hawkeyes. The Wildcats beat Iowa, 6-1, in Iowa City when the teams last met on April 9, 2011. The Hawkeyes will look to even their all-time record against Illinois on March 25. The Fighting Illini currently lead the series 23-24. Illinois topped the Hawkeyes twice in 2011.
ITA SINGLES RANKINGS
Northwestern and Illinois both had players featured in the ITA singles poll on March 13. Katie Turvy (16) and Brittany Wowchuk (61) were tabbed for the Wildcats, while Allison Falkin (92) appeared for the Fighting Illini. UI sophomore Christina Harazin defeated Wowchuk, 7-5, 1-6, 1-0, on April 9. Wowchuk was ranked No. 50 at the time.
ITA DOUBLES RANKINGS
The Wildcats and Fighting Illini both boast nationally-ranked doubles duos. Northwestern’s Linda Abu Mushrefova and Nida Hamilton were pegged 14th by the ITA on March 13. Illinois had two tandems ranked in the poll, as Rachael White and Allison Falkin were tabbed 41st and Breanne Smutko and Chelcie Abajian appeared at No. 79. Iowa senior Sonja Molnar registered victories against two of the three duos in 2011 while teamed with Jessica Young. Molnar and Young earned an 8-6 victory over Abu Mushrefova and Hamilton on April 9. Abu Mushrefova and Hamilton were ranked seventh at the time. Molnar and Young defeated White and Falkin, ranked No. 15 at the time, on Jan. 30.