THIS WEEK
The University of Iowa women’s tennis team is set for its home opener, hosting Memphis and Northern Illinois on Friday at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Center. The Hawkeyes will open the doubleheader with Memphis at 10 a.m. (CT) before squaring off against Northern Illinois at 6 p.m.
FOLLOW LIVE
Fans can watch the matches live via PlaySight on hawkeyesports.com. Live results will also be available via Statbroadcast. Fans can also follow the action live via the Iowa women’s X account (@iowa_tennis).
LAST WEEK
The Hawkeyes dropped a pair of matches last weekend, falling 4-1 to both Kansas State and Denver last weekend in Colorado. Iowa won the doubles point against the Wildcats and earned a point in singles against the Pioneers.
HOME SWEET HOME
A season ago, the Hawkeyes went 7-2 in home duals at the HTRC, outscoring their opponents, 31-18. Iowa’s lone two losses came against No. 4 Iowa State and Indiana. The Hawkeyes earned three home ranked wins during the year, downing No. 63 Nebraska, No. 47 Purdue and No. 62 Maryland.
DOUBLES SUCCESS
Iowa’s No. 3 doubles tandem featuring Pia Kranholdt and Barbora Pokorna have gotten off to a strong start this spring. The duo has won five of their first six matches, accounting for all but two of the team’s doubles victories.
DAI: NATIONALLY RANKED
• After winning five matches during the fall season, sophomore Daianne Hayashida earned a spot in ITA’s singles rankings. The Peru native was ranked No. 109 in the nation in the rankings that were released on Nov. 15.
• Hayashida opened the spring as Iowa’s No. 1 singles player, where she has a team-best 3-2 singles record.
• During the fall, Hayashida advanced to the quarterfinals of the ITA Midwest Regionals and she competed in the main draw of the ITA Women’s All-American Championships in September. She was the first Hawkeye to advance to the regional quarterfinals since Elise van Heuvelen in 2019.
A REVIEW
• Iowa posted seven victories against ranked opponents during the 2022-23 season, including a 4-1 victory over No. 31 Illinois in Champaign.
• Iowa finished the regular season tied for fifth place in the Big Ten standings, marking the second time in three seasons that the program has placed fifth or better.
SCOUTING MEMPHIS
• The Tigers are currently 4-2 on the season with their only losses coming against No. 24 Washington and No. 22 Vanderbilt.
• Memphis finished its fall season with a total of 16 victories at the Bonita Bay Classic in Florida.
• Iowa is 1-2 all-time against Memphis.
SCOUTING NORTHERN ILLINOIS
• The Huskies are 2-2 on the season after picking up a pair of victories last weekend over Marquette and Bellarmine University.
• NIU’s Erika Dimitriev and Nataly Ninova earned Mid-American Conference Doubles Team of the Week honors in late January.
• Iowa leads the series over the Huskies, 8-1.
UP NEXT
The Hawkeyes will return to action Feb. 16, traveling to Des Moines, Iowa, for an Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series matchup against Iowa State.