Huskers Roar Past Penn State

Lincoln - Four Huskers earned singles victories and the Big Red swept all three doubles matches as the Nebraska women's tennis team powered its way to a 5-2 victory over Penn State on Friday at the Dillon Tennis Center.

The convincing win over the Nittany Lions pushed Nebraska to 18-3 overall and 5-2 in the Big Ten Conference.

Freshmen Claire Reifeis and Hayley Haakenstad cruised to a 6-2 win over Penn State's Katia Blik and Samantha Smith at the No. 3 spot. Reifeis and Haakenstad improved to 11-2 overall and 6-1 against Big Ten competition on the season.

At, No. 1 doubles, senior Mary Hanna and sophomore Paula Del Cueto Castillo secured the doubles point for the Big Red with a 6-3 victory over PSU's Jacqueline Zuhse and Bennett Dunn. Hanna and Del Cueto Castillo have paired up for an 8-3 overall record, including a 4-1 Big Ten mark this season.

Senior Lisa Andersson and sophomore Vasanti Shinde led their Penn State counterparts Devan McCluskey and Shannon Hanley, 4-3, at No. 2 doubles when their match was halted after the Huskers captured wins at No. 1 and No. 3 doubles.

In singles competition, Del Cueto Castillo swept Zuhse 6-3, 6-3 at the No. 3 spot to improve to 10-3 overall and 4-3 in Big Ten action.

At No. 4 singles, Hanna added a sweep of her own with a 6-3, 7-5 victory over Smith to improve to 14-2 overall and 5-1 in the Big Ten. 

Husker junior Katerina Matysova defeated Dunn 6-3, 6-1 in straight sets to extend her personal singles win streak to 13 consecutive matches. Matysova is 13-0 overall and 3-0 in Big Ten play during the season.

At the No. 6 spot, Andersson suffered a 6-2, 6-4 loss to Hanley, while Shinde dropped a 6-4, 6-4 match to Blik at the No. 1 spot.

In the most dramatic match of the contest, Reifeis overcame McCluskey in three sets of a back-and-forth match at the No. 2 position. Reifeis won the first set 6-3, before suffering a narrow 6-7 setback in the second set. In the third set, Reifeis battled to a 10-6 win in the decisive set to improve to 12-5 overall and 3-3 in Big Ten play.

The Huskers will honor two talented seniors on Sunday as they host nationally ranked Ohio State on Senior Day against Ohio State at Noon. The Buckeyes enter the weekend 19-2 overall, with a match scheduled against Iowa on Friday before facing the Huskers. The Buckeyes are in a three-way tie with Michigan and Northwestern at 5-0 at the top of the Big Ten standings. The all-time series record between Nebraska and Ohio State is tied at 5-5.

Admission to Sunday's match is free. Fans can follow live stats on Huskers.com or stay up to date by following the team at @HuskersWTennis on Twitter. 

Results

Nebraska 5, Penn State 2

Singles competition

1. Katia Blik (PST) def. Vasanti Shinde (NEB) 6-4, 6-4
2. Claire Reifeis (NEB) def. Devan McCluskey (PST) 6-3, 6-7, 10-6
3. Paula Del Cueto Castillo (NEB) def. Jacqueline Zuhse (PST) 6-3, 6-3
4. Mary Hanna (NEB) def. Samantha Smith (PST) 6-3, 7-5
5. Katerina Matysova (NEB) def. Bennett Dunn (PST) 6-3, 6-1
6. Shannon Hanley (PST) def. Lisa Andersson (NEB) 6-2, 6-4

Doubles competition

1. Mary Hanna/Paula Del Cueto Castillo (NEB) def. Jacqueline Zuhse/Bennett Dunn (PST) 6-3
2. Lisa Andersson/Vasanti Shinde (NEB) def. Devan McCluskey/Shannon Hanley (PST) 4-3
3. Claire Reifeis/Hayley Haakenstad (NEB) def. Katia Blik/Samantha Smith (PST) 6-2