Wednesday, April 24
Ann Arbor, Mich.
10:00 AM
Rutgers University
vs
Michigan State
Photo by: Cos Lymperopoulos
Tennis Readies for Big Ten Tournament First Round Against Michigan State
Apr 22 | Women's Tennis
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The No. 12-seeded Rutgers women's tennis team (11-11, 2-9 B1G) will take on No. 13 Michigan State (10-15, 1-10 B1G) in the first round of the 2024 Big Ten Tournament on Wednesday, April 24 at 12 p.m. The tournament, hosted by Michigan, will take place at the Varsity Tennis Center in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Last Time Out
Jackeline Lopez provided the match-clinching victory, as RU narrowly topped Minnesota, 4-3, in a four-hour thriller on Sunday, April 21 at the Livingston Tennis Center for the program's Senior Day.
"I'm proud of how our team battled," said head coach Hilary Ritchie. "It was great to honor our five seniors before the match, then we came out ready to go. Jackie coming up clutch at the end was huge, as well."
Recapping the 2023 Fall
The Scarlet Knights are coming off a successful fall schedule, where they posted a team record of 78-59 in singles and doubles competitions through seven total events.
Leading the way in singles play was Minchae Kim, who claimed 17 total victories, nine singles and eight doubles.
Mai Nguyen also had a strong showing, recording an 8-2 record in singles competitions. The sophomore finished the campaign on a five-match win streak which included two straight-set victories and three comeback wins.
In doubles, the pair of Nguyen and Amira Badawi won five matches together, the most out of RU's 18 different duos.
Recapping the 2023 Spring
RU finished its 2023 spring season with an 11-13 record. The campaign was highlighted by a 9-2 nonconference record, earning wins in the first four matches of the year.
Following a challenging conference slate that consisted of nine ranked opponents, Rutgers earned the No. 13 seed in the 14-team bracket in the 2023 Big Ten Women's Tennis Tournament.
The Scarlet Knights opened the tournament with a match against No. 12-seeded Michigan State, earning a 5-1 victory. The first round win marked the first Big Ten Tournament win for head coach Hilary Ritchie since she was elevated to the position in 2016.
The team's spring campaign ended in the tournament with a 4-1 loss to No. 5-seeded Northwestern.
New Kids 'On The Banks'
RU welcomed two new additions to the squad this offseason, graduate student Yana Gurevich and freshman Naomi Karki.
Gurevich spent four years at UC Davis before coming to join the Scarlet Knights. The Los Gatos, Calif. native announced her decision to finish her collegiate career 'On the Banks' in November 2022.
During her successful four-year career with her former team, Gurevich recorded a 44-30 singles record helping her to be named the Big West Player of the Week three times. She was also named to the All-Big West Conference Second Team Singles as a sophomore and junior.
Following a strong senior season where she finished with a 10-8 singles record playing exclusively at the top lineup spot, Gurevish was named to the All-Big West Conference First Team Singles and Doubles.
Karki began her Rutgers career after finding success at East Brunswick High School where she led her squad to the 2019 NJSIAA State Championship as well as GMC and Red Division titles.
As an individual, Karki recorded an impressive 24-2 during that season and was named the Heather O'Reilly Freshman of the Year as well as the GMC Fall Athlete of the Year by MyCentralJersey.com.
In 2021, Karki led her team to repeat as both GMC and Red Division champions. She also advanced to semifinals in doubles of G18 National Winter Championships.
Karki spent the 2022 summer training at the Juan Carlos Ferrero Academy in Villena, Spain.
Aye, Aye Captain(s)
Heading into the upcoming campaign, Ritchie has named Chloe Brown and Lopez as the team's co-captains for the spring. Brown, a senior out of Johns Creek, Ga., will enter the season as captain for the second-straight year, while Lopez, a junior from Dunwoody, Ga., earned the distinction for the first time in her career.
Entering her fourth spring season with the Scarlet Knights, Brown has appeared in 39 total matches over the last three years. The senior competed in a career-high 18 matches in 2023, recording 10 total wins, six singles and four doubles. Following the campaign, Brown was named a 2023 ITA All-Academic Team Member and ITA Scholar Athlete.
Lopez has been a mainstay at the top of Rutgers' lineups throughout her first two seasons with the program. During the 2023 spring slate, the junior took the court in 23 matches, recording 16 wins, eight singles and eight doubles. All of her singles victories came at the No. 1 spot.
History Against Michigan State
MSU holds a 6-3 advantage in the lifetime series with RU. However, the Scarlet Knights have claimed wins in each of the teams previous three meetings.
Earlier this season, RU downed Michigan State, 4-0, for its first Big Ten victory of the dual campaign. Yana Gurevich, Mai Nguyen, and Naomi Karki each recorded singles victories in the win.
The Scarlet Knights and the Spartans also faced off in the First Round of the Big Ten Tournament a season ago. In the dual, Rutgers claimed a 5-1 win for its first tournament victory under Ritchie since she took the reins in 2016.
Scouting the Spartans
MSU finished its regular season with a 10-15 record. The Spartans earned one B1G dual victory this spring, downing Indiana, 4-0, on March 31.
No. 106 Ria Bhakta led the Spartans in singles victories this season with 10. The freshman's impressive campaign was highlighted by a ranked-win over Michigan's 19th-ranked Julia Fliegner.
Looking Ahead
The winner of Wednesday's match will go on to face No. 5 Illinois on Thursday, April 25 at 10 a.m.
Follow Along
Follow Rutgers women's tennis on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
2024 #B1GWTennis Tournament Bracket Revealed https://t.co/xcNyw8Jjes
— Big Ten Conference (@bigten) April 22, 2024
Last Time Out
Jackeline Lopez provided the match-clinching victory, as RU narrowly topped Minnesota, 4-3, in a four-hour thriller on Sunday, April 21 at the Livingston Tennis Center for the program's Senior Day.
"I'm proud of how our team battled," said head coach Hilary Ritchie. "It was great to honor our five seniors before the match, then we came out ready to go. Jackie coming up clutch at the end was huge, as well."
Thank you to our seniors! We are so proud of you ❤️#GoRU | #RTennis pic.twitter.com/CjcCEUvDlt
— Rutgers Tennis (@RutgersTennis) April 21, 2024
Recapping the 2023 Fall
The Scarlet Knights are coming off a successful fall schedule, where they posted a team record of 78-59 in singles and doubles competitions through seven total events.
Leading the way in singles play was Minchae Kim, who claimed 17 total victories, nine singles and eight doubles.
Mai Nguyen also had a strong showing, recording an 8-2 record in singles competitions. The sophomore finished the campaign on a five-match win streak which included two straight-set victories and three comeback wins.
In doubles, the pair of Nguyen and Amira Badawi won five matches together, the most out of RU's 18 different duos.
Recapping the 2023 Spring
RU finished its 2023 spring season with an 11-13 record. The campaign was highlighted by a 9-2 nonconference record, earning wins in the first four matches of the year.
Following a challenging conference slate that consisted of nine ranked opponents, Rutgers earned the No. 13 seed in the 14-team bracket in the 2023 Big Ten Women's Tennis Tournament.
The Scarlet Knights opened the tournament with a match against No. 12-seeded Michigan State, earning a 5-1 victory. The first round win marked the first Big Ten Tournament win for head coach Hilary Ritchie since she was elevated to the position in 2016.
The team's spring campaign ended in the tournament with a 4-1 loss to No. 5-seeded Northwestern.
New Kids 'On The Banks'
RU welcomed two new additions to the squad this offseason, graduate student Yana Gurevich and freshman Naomi Karki.
Gurevich spent four years at UC Davis before coming to join the Scarlet Knights. The Los Gatos, Calif. native announced her decision to finish her collegiate career 'On the Banks' in November 2022.
During her successful four-year career with her former team, Gurevich recorded a 44-30 singles record helping her to be named the Big West Player of the Week three times. She was also named to the All-Big West Conference Second Team Singles as a sophomore and junior.
Following a strong senior season where she finished with a 10-8 singles record playing exclusively at the top lineup spot, Gurevish was named to the All-Big West Conference First Team Singles and Doubles.
Karki began her Rutgers career after finding success at East Brunswick High School where she led her squad to the 2019 NJSIAA State Championship as well as GMC and Red Division titles.
As an individual, Karki recorded an impressive 24-2 during that season and was named the Heather O'Reilly Freshman of the Year as well as the GMC Fall Athlete of the Year by MyCentralJersey.com.
In 2021, Karki led her team to repeat as both GMC and Red Division champions. She also advanced to semifinals in doubles of G18 National Winter Championships.
Karki spent the 2022 summer training at the Juan Carlos Ferrero Academy in Villena, Spain.
Aye, Aye Captain(s)
Heading into the upcoming campaign, Ritchie has named Chloe Brown and Lopez as the team's co-captains for the spring. Brown, a senior out of Johns Creek, Ga., will enter the season as captain for the second-straight year, while Lopez, a junior from Dunwoody, Ga., earned the distinction for the first time in her career.
Entering her fourth spring season with the Scarlet Knights, Brown has appeared in 39 total matches over the last three years. The senior competed in a career-high 18 matches in 2023, recording 10 total wins, six singles and four doubles. Following the campaign, Brown was named a 2023 ITA All-Academic Team Member and ITA Scholar Athlete.
Lopez has been a mainstay at the top of Rutgers' lineups throughout her first two seasons with the program. During the 2023 spring slate, the junior took the court in 23 matches, recording 16 wins, eight singles and eight doubles. All of her singles victories came at the No. 1 spot.
History Against Michigan State
MSU holds a 6-3 advantage in the lifetime series with RU. However, the Scarlet Knights have claimed wins in each of the teams previous three meetings.
Earlier this season, RU downed Michigan State, 4-0, for its first Big Ten victory of the dual campaign. Yana Gurevich, Mai Nguyen, and Naomi Karki each recorded singles victories in the win.
The Scarlet Knights and the Spartans also faced off in the First Round of the Big Ten Tournament a season ago. In the dual, Rutgers claimed a 5-1 win for its first tournament victory under Ritchie since she took the reins in 2016.
Scouting the Spartans
MSU finished its regular season with a 10-15 record. The Spartans earned one B1G dual victory this spring, downing Indiana, 4-0, on March 31.
No. 106 Ria Bhakta led the Spartans in singles victories this season with 10. The freshman's impressive campaign was highlighted by a ranked-win over Michigan's 19th-ranked Julia Fliegner.
Looking Ahead
The winner of Wednesday's match will go on to face No. 5 Illinois on Thursday, April 25 at 10 a.m.
Follow Along
Follow Rutgers women's tennis on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
Players Mentioned
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