Friday, 04/20/2012

MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin women’s tennis team captured its second-straight Big Ten victory Friday afternoon with a 5-2 win over the Iowa Hawkeyes at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Complex in Iowa City, Ia.

With the win, the Badgers improve to 12-10 overall and 3-7 in the Big Ten, while Iowa falls to 8-13 overall and 2-8 in the league.

The doubles team of sophomore Nicky Stracar and senior Alaina Trgovich prevailed in the deciding doubles match at court one to give the Badgers the early lead. Wisconsin’s No. 1 duo defeated Morven McCulloch and Sonja Molnar, 8-3.

At court three, senior Angela Chupa and Sarah Loebel registered UW’s first doubles victory after holding the Iowa pair of Cassandra Escobar and Ally Majercik to just one game in an 8-1 victory.

Junior Hannah Berner and sophomore Nova Patel suffered the Badgers’ only defeat in an 8-4 loss to Christina Harazin and Shelby Talcott at No. 2.

It didn’t take Iowa long to answer the Badgers’ victory in doubles, however. The Hawkeyes claimed the first singles victory to even the match, 1-1.

Stracar lost a 6-2, 6-1 decision to McCulloch at the No. 3 spot.

UW recorded victories in the next three singles contests, though, to clinch the match before the Hawkeyes captured their second singles point.

Berner tallied Wisconsin’s first singles victory with a 6-1, 6-3 win over Talcott at the No. 2 position.

Patel beat Harazin, 6-3, 6-4 at court five to put the Badgers up, 3-1.

Loebel clinched the match for Wisconsin with a three-set victory at court four. The UW freshman earned her fourth-straight win, defeating Katie Zordani, 3-6, 6-3, 6-0.

Senior Aleksandra Markovic’s straight-set victory at court six marked the Belgrade, Serbia, native’s 100th career win at Wisconsin. Markovic captured the milestone victory with a 6-4, 7-5 win over Majercik.

Iowa recorded its second singles point at the top spot as 65th-ranked Molnar defeated Trgovich, 7-5, 6-2.

The Badgers seek their third-straight conference victory Sunday when they host No. 18 Nebraska in the regular season finale. First serve is slated for 11 a.m. at Nielsen Tennis Stadium.

Final Results:

Wisconsin 5 - Iowa Hawkeyes 2

Singles:
1. #65 Sonja Molnar (IOWA) def. Alaina Trgovich (UW), 7-5, 6-2
2. Hannah Berner (UW) def. Shelby Talcott (IOWA), 6-1, 6-3
3. Morven McCulloch (IOWA) def. Nicky Stracar (UW), 6-2, 6-1
4. Sarah Loebel (UW) def. Katie Zordani (IOWA), 3-6, 6-3, 6-0
5. Nova Patel (UW) def. Christina Harazin (IOWA), 6-3, 6-4
6. Aleksandra Markovic (UW) def. Ally Majercik (IOWA), 6-4, 7-5

Order of finish:
3, 2, 5, 4, 1, 6

Doubles:
1. Nicky Stracar/Alaina Trgovich (UW) def. Morven McCulloch/Sonja Molnar (IOWA), 8-3
2. Christina Harazin/Shelby Talcott (IOWA) def. Hannah Berner/Nova Patel (UW), 8-4
3. Angela Chupa/Sarah Loebel (UW) def. Cassandra Escobar/Ally Majercik (IOWA), 8-1

Order of finish:
3, 2, 1