The No. 32 Wisconsin women's tennis team travels to Michigan for two matches this weekend. They will take on the Michigan Wolverines in Ann Arbor, Mich. on Saturday and the Michigan St. Spartans in East Lansing, Mich. on Sunday. Wisconsin (3-0 Big Ten, 8-3 overall) is coming off a nonconference loss to the No. 18 Notre Dame Fighting Irish on March 1, but they are undefeated in conference play so far this year.
The Spartans and the Wolverines are currently tied with No. 75 rankings nationally in the International Tennis Association polls. Neither team has a singles player or doubles team that is nationally ranked. Even though the teams from Michigan are both ranked below Wisconsin, Head Coach Patti Henderson expects a close match with both teams.
\We expect a very tough Michigan team,"" Henderson said. ""They're ranked 75th in the nation, but that doesn't mean anything. They've played a tough schedule, and they've played against a lot of nationally ranked teams. ...We expect a heated match.""
The players know they will have to keep their heads in the game in order to succeed.
""We have to come out and play our game,"" junior Linde Mues said. ""We expect to play well.""
Wisconsin will go into this weekend well-rested. The team has not played a match since Notre Dame. Since then, the team has had a lot of time off from the courts.
""We've had two weeks off which is rare for a tennis season,"" Henderson said. ""The team hasn't been together for six or seven days and today is the first day we've played games in practice for a while. They looked ready to play for this weekend.""
Wisconsin will rely heavily on the talent of Mues and senior Vanessa Rauh. Rauh is currently ranked 86th in the nation with an 8-3 record in singles play. Henderson said Rauh is much improved from last year.
""Last year she was competitive on the court,"" Henderson said. ""She was lacking a little bit of that edge, though. She developed that over the fall. She has more confidence now, not as much with her play, but mentally. She acts more confident in games and in practice.""
Mues has also improved since last year. She has a 6-4 record in singles play so far this season. The native of Belgium also has a 6-4 record in doubles play this year where she is teamed with junior Lara Vojnov.
""I had some injury problems my freshman and sophomore year and those have really diminished a lot,"" Mues said. ""This year's been good. It's just clicked I guess.""
Wisconsin has played well as a team this year, which is evident in the improved play of the teammates. Much of the success has been contributed to strong teamwork.
""I think everybody has been pushing each other and that's what makes our team so strong this year,"" Mues said.
""The entire team is playing very well together this year,"" Henderson said. ""They have pushed each other all year.\
