The UW women's tennis team came close, but dropped a heartbreaking 4-3 match to No. 53 Minnesota (3-5 Big Ten, 10-9 overall) in the final home contest for Badger seniors Caitlin Burke and Kaylan Caiati at Nielsen Tennis Stadium.
""It hasn't really hit me yet that I won't be playing another match here,"" Caiati said. ""I kind of thought about it right after I finished my match, but I don't think it will actually hit me for a while.""
Caiati, a Greendale, Wis. native, was unable to match her effort in the first set in the second, losing to Minnesota's Tijana Koprivica 7-5, 6-1 at No. 2 singles. At No. 1 singles, Burke nearly came back from down 5-2 in the second set, but fell short to Ashely Schellhas of the Gophers 6-4, 6-4.
""It's tough adjusting outdoors, and I just let her get ahead too early,"" said Burke, a Cedarburg, Wis. native. ""I started coming back in the end, but it was kind of too late for that. I give (Schellhas) credit, she played really well.""
Instead of looking at their individual losses, UW coach Patti Henderson looked at the impact of Burke and Caiati on the team in the last four years.
""I know it's disappointing for them in their last home match,"" Henderson said. ""But when you look at the grand scheme of things, and what they've done for this program, it dwindles. They've been phenomenal student-athletes and ambassadors for this university.""
The Badgers (0-9, 4-15) jumped out to an early 1-0 lead by taking the doubles point to open the match. The No. 1 duo of Burke and Liz Carpenter, currently ranked No. 54 in the nation, secured the point with a thrilling 9-8 (3) triumph over Schellhas and Lindsay Riesbrough of Minnesota. Caiati and junior Nicole Beck were also victorious for the Badgers, downing Koprivica and Ida Malmberg 8-6 at the No. 2 spot.
Junior Morgan Tuttle and sophomore Erin Jobe each provided a singles victory for UW. Tuttle, playing at the No. 5 spot, rebounded in the third set to take a 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 win over Karina Chiarelli. Jobe defeated Mikayla Rogers 6-4, 6-1 at the No. 6 spot.
The loss marked the Badgers' fourth consecutive in conference play by a 4-3 margin.
""We're this close,"" Henderson said. ""It's like every which way we can possibly have it come out that way, it's happened. We're ready to get a win.""
Saturday, the Badgers had opportunities but were narrowly beaten 4-3 by No. 57 Iowa (5-2, 9-8). Burke, Nusslock and junior Morgan Tuttle all won three-set matches for UW, but the Hawkeyes' Milica Veselinovic pulled out a hard-fought win 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 over Caiati with the match on the line.
The Badgers travel to East Lansing, Mich., Saturday for their final match of the regular season against Michigan State. The Big Ten Tournament begins April 26.
