THIS WEEK
The University of Iowa women’s tennis team hosts its Big Ten opener against No. 4 Ohio State on Friday at 5 p.m. (CT) at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Complex. The Hawkeyes then host No. 70 Penn State on Sunday at 11 a.m. (CT). Admission is free to Iowa home matches. Fans can follow along on StatBroadcast or Playsight, which can be found on the women’s tennis schedule page at hawkeyesports.com.
ON IOWA… LAST TIME OUT
Iowa enters the weekend with a 4-7 record and will play its third and fourth straight matches versus ranked opponents. The Hawkeyes suffered two home losses against ranked teams (No. 45 Minnesota, No. 48 Memphis) last weekend. Freshman Barbora Pokorna was a key factor in Iowa’s rally against the Tigers, capturing the No. 5 singles position, where she improved to 2-0 this season. Freshman Marisa Schmidt also contributed points for the Hawkeyes in their matchup against Memphis, improving her singles record to 6-4. Senior Samantha Mannix captured the Hawkeyes’ lone point against the Gophers improving her record to 4-5.
FRESHMEN SUCCESS
Iowa’s freshmen are a combined 12-6 in singles play. Pokorna leads the Hawkeyes with a 6-2 record at the No. 4, No. 5, and No. 6 spots. Pokorna recorded her sixth win of the season over Memphis’ Camila Soares in straight sets (6-4, 7-5) on March 11.
Schmidt competes at Iowa’s No. 1 spot and registered her sixth win of the season over Memphis’s Camila Romero in straight sets (6-4, 6-4) on March 11. The German native bounced Mississippi State’s No. 50 Emmanouela Antonaki in straight sets (6-3, 6-4) at the No. 2 position on Jan. 29 at the ITA Kickoff Weekend.
OHIO STATE BREAKDOWN
• The Buckeyes are 8-3 and are currently on a six-match win streak.
• Ohio State defeated No. 13 Florida and No. 14 Auburn at the ITA National Team Indoor Championships, and most recently defeated eighth-ranked Pepperdine.
• Iowa has an overall record of 23-25 against the Buckeyes.
• The Hawkeyes’ last victory over the Buckeyes was in 2010.
• Three Ohio State student-athletes are ranked in the latest ITA Singles Collegiate Tennis Rankings – Irina Cantos Siemers is ranked No. 4, Isabelle Boulais is ranked No. 19, and Sydni Ratliff is ranked No. 43.
• Ratliff/Siemers are ranked No. 15 in this week’s ITA Doubles Collegiate Tennis Rankings.
PENN STATE BREAKDOWN
• The Nittany Lions are 6-7 overall and 0-1 in conference play, losing to nationally-ranked Ohio State.
• Penn State is ranked No. 70 in the ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings.
• Iowa has an overall record of 26-8 against Penn State.
• The Hawkeyes’ last win against the Nittany Lions came in 2017.
• Penn State has no student-athletes ranked in the ITA Singles or Doubles Collegiate Tennis Rankings.
• Iowa’s last contest against Penn State was in 2018.
IOWA TO HOST 2022 BIG TEN WOMEN’S TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS
The University of Iowa has been selected to host the 2022 Big Ten Women’s Tennis Championships. The event will take place April 27 through May 1 at the Hawkeye Tennis & Recreation Complex. The last time Iowa hosted the conference tournament was 2010.
FOLLOW THE HAWKEYES
Fans can follow the Iowa women’s tennis team on Facebook and via Twitter @Iowa_Tennis. Results from each match is available on the Iowa women’s tennis schedule page at hawkeyesports.com.
NOEL CLIMBS NATIONAL RANKINGS
Sophomore Alexa Noel is ranked No. 3 in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s national rankings. The rankings are a result of individual competition that took place last fall and the start of spring competition beginning last month. Noel has been ranked as high as No. 3, which is the highest ranking of any player in program history. The Summit, New Jersey, native won seven matches in the fall, including notching a win over both the No. 1 and No. 2 ranked players in the nation.