Huskers Face Future Big Ten Foes

No. 32 Nebraska (10-1) vs. No. 45 Ohio State (7-4)
Date: Friday, March 11, 2011
Location: Lincoln, Neb.
Venue: Nebraska Tennis Center
Start time: 6:30 p.m.

No. 32 Nebraska (10-1) vs. Iowa (2-6)
Date: Sunday, March 13, 2011
Location: Iowa City, Iowa
Venue: Hawkeye Tennis Complex
Start time:  2 p.m.

The Nebraska women's tennis team will continue action against future Big Ten conference foes with matches this weekend against Ohio State and Iowa. The No. 32 Huskers (10-1) will face No. 45 Ohio State (7-4) at the Nebraska Tennis Center on Friday night before traveling to battle the Hawkeyes (2-6) in Iowa City on Sunday. The Huskers are 3-2 all-time against Ohio State and 5-14 all-time against Iowa.

Nebraska Rises in Polls
After a drop in last week's computer rankings the Huskers are on the rise again in the latest ITA Women's National Team Rankings, jumping four spots to No. 32 overall. The Big Red defeated No. 66 Wisconsin and No. 59 Minnesota last weekend in Minnesota, bringing their total of wins over ranked teams this season to five. This is the eighth consecutive week of the 2011 season in which NU is ranked.

The Huskers remain fifth among Big 12 teams, resting behind Baylor (No. 9), Oklahoma (No. 18), Texas (No. 24) and Texas A&M (No. 27). In addition, NU is second in the current Big 12 standings and also has the conference's highest win percentage (.909). Baylor is first, being the only Big 12 team that has played and won a conference match so far.

Tracking the Rankings
Date                 Rank
Jan. 4               #34
Jan. 25             #34
Feb. 3               #33
Feb. 8               #32
Feb. 14             #31
Feb. 22             #26
March 1            #36
March 8            #32

Scouting the Ohio State Buckeyes
The Buckeyes come to Lincoln after a 6-1 win over Louisville, putting them at 7-4 on the season overall and ranked No. 45 in the nation. Ohio State is 1-1 on the road this season and is 2-4 against ranked teams. Notable about this match-up are the connections between Ohio State and NU: The Buckeyes are led by Omaha, Neb. native Cami Hubbs, and OSU's assistant coach Sadhaf Fath spent a year as an assistant coach with NU in 2004.

The Buckeyes are led by Hubbs, a senior team co-captain who is 8-0 in singles and 11-6 in doubles action so far this season. Hubbs is riding an eight match win streak in singles play and plays primarily at the No. 6 position.

Ohio State women's tennis is in its 15th season with Head Coach Chuck Merzbacher at the helm. His teams have posted 342 wins, including 209 at OSU.

Scouting the Iowa Hawkeyes
Iowa is currently 2-6 on the season, but features ranked competitors in Sonja Molnar (No. 102 Singles) and the doubles team of Molnar and Jessica Young (No. 33). Iowa is 1-1 on their home court so far this season, defeating Miami (OH) but falling to Kansas State. The Hawkeyes are fresh off a loss to Missouri in Columbia, where they fell by a close score of 4-3.

The Hawkeyes are led on the court by Molnar, who is 5-3 overall in singles action and plays primarily at the No. 1 position. Molnar has already faced an NU competitor once this season, as she defeated Patricia Veresova at the ITA Central Regional in October.
Iowa is coached by Katie Dougherty, who is in her second season leading the Hawkeyes. Dougherty had an exceptional first season with Iowa in 2010, guiding the Hawkeyes to a 17-7 record and an NCAA Championship appearance.

Huskers Capture Pair of Home Wins
The Nebraska women's tennis team captured two wins over ranked opponents last weekend. The Huskers defeated No. 66 Wisconsin on March 5, 6-1, before sweeping Minnesota 7-0 on March 6. No. 36 Nebraska's (10-1) wins gave them a total of five wins over ranked opponents this season.

The Huskers kicked off the weekend against Wisconsin, using tenacious play and athleticism to topple the Badgers, 6-1.  Nebraska used a fast start in doubles action to take control of the match, with their No. 76 duo of Madeleine Geibert and Stefanie Weinstein capturing the win in No. 1 singles, 8-6. The Big Red clinched the doubles point with Jennifer Holmberg and Janine Weinreich's victory  in No. 2 singles, 7-6 (2), 6-2. In No. 3 singles, NU's Patricia Veresova and Maike Zeppernick fell, 9-7.

The match then transitioned into singles play, where Nebraska snatched up five of six singles matches en route to their victory. Geibert knocked off her opponent in No. 1 singles, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4. Veresova tacked on another win for the Big Red at the No. 2 spot, 7-6 (2), 6-2. Weinstein's 6-7 (0), 6-0, 6-2 win in No. 3 singles clinched the win for Nebraska. Holmberg added another victory for the Huskers with her 6-4, 6-3 win in No. 5 doubles. Zeppernick had the final win for Nebraska, picking up a victory in No. 6 singles, 7-6 (1), 6-4. NU's only singles loss of the day came at the No. 4 position, where Janine Weinreich fell, 6-2, 6-3.

The Huskers faced the Golden Gophers on Sunday, but let momentum carry them to a 7-0 sweep. Nebraska's No. 76-ranked duo of Madeleine Geibert and Stefanie Weinstein kicked off doubles action with an 8-4 win in No. 1 doubles. Janine Weinreich and Jennifer Holmberg followed, topping in No. 2 doubles, 8-3. Maike Zeppernick and Patricia Veresova closed out doubles action with their 8-4 win at the No. 3 spot.

Nebraska carried its 1-0 advantage into singles action and didn't look back, capturing wins in all singles matches to complete their sweep. Zeppernick was first to finish, tacking up a 6-1, 6-0 win in No. 6. Geibert wrapped up her win next, recording a 6-3, 6-3 win at the No. 1 position. Holmberg then added another win for NU in No. 5 singles, 6-4, 6-2.  Next to complete play was Weinreich, who was victorious in No. 4 singles, 6-1, 6-2. Weinstein battled back from a close first set to dominate her opponent in No. 3 singles, 7-6(5), 6-2. Finishing action on the day was Veresova, who won in No. 2 doubles, 6-3, 6-3.

Live Stats available for Matches
Live stats will be available for both of NU's matches this weekend. Fans can follow the action on Friday on Huskers.com by following the link at the top of the page. Iowa will provide live stats for the match on Sunday. That link is also available at the top of the page.