Home sweet home.
After 35 days between home matches, the Wisconsin women’s tennis team (0-1 Big Ten, 6-7 overall) finally returns to Nielsen Tennis Stadium to welcome Rutgers on Friday at 4 p.m. and Maryland on Sunday at noon as it looks to regain its early season success.
After starting the season hot, a perfect 6-0, UW has struggled to keep up with the increased level of competition. The Badgers have lost seven in a row. After getting blown out in the ITA National Indoor Tournament to multiple top-25 ranked teams and two tough road trips to Las Vegas and Virginia, Wisconsin lost a nail-biter to Minnesota, 4-3, in its Big Ten opener in Minneapolis.
After a week off, UW fans will look forward to its Big Ten home opener. Rutgers enters Madison with a 5-6 record, fresh off a narrow 4-3 victory over Georgia Southern last week. Before its win over Georgia Southern, Rutgers had lost four in a row. The Scarlet Knights have struggled on the road, with a 1-3 record and Wisconsin represents Rutgers’ conference opener.
Neither the Badgers nor the Scarlet Knights enter Friday’s match ranked in the top 25, and neither team has a single individual player ranked in the ITA top 25 singles players. Wisconsin standout freshman Lexi Keberle, who was ranked 111 in the last ITA rankings, fell out of the top 125 in the most recent rankings. Both sides will look to overcome recent struggles and earn a first Big Ten win.
Wisconsin gets one day off before returning to action Sunday, this time hosting Maryland. The Terrapins enter the weekend hot with a three-game win streak after a tight 4-3 victory over Columbia and two blowout 6-1 wins over West Virginia and Marshall. UMD opens its Big Ten schedule on Friday at Minnesota before travelling to Madison to face the Badgers. Maryland is not ranked in the top 25 and has no individual players ranked in the top 125.
UW does not have much history with either school, only playing each side three times. The Badgers enjoy a 2-1 record against both schools, but lost to both Maryland and Rutgers, 4-0 and 4-3 respectively, last year. This weekend offers the Badgers an excellent opportunity to get off the schneid against two mid-tier Big Ten opponents.
Both matches are free for the public, and fans can watch a livestream here.
