Spartans Drop Contest to Northwestern

EVANSTON, Ill. — Michigan State women’s tennis fought hard against Northwestern, stealing a point before falling to the Wildcats 4-1 at the Combe Tennis Center on Sunday. With the loss, the Spartans move to 8-10 (1-6 Big Ten) while Northwestern improves to 6-11 (2-3 Big Ten). 
 
The Spartans battled in the doubles portion but could not corral the Wildcats, dropping the doubles point to start the dual. Northwestern took an early advantage at No. 2 doubles with the pairing of Briana Crowley and Maria Shusharina dispatching MSU’s Issey Purser and Nicole Conard, 6-2. The Wildcats would take the doubles point with a win at No. 1 doubles as Spartans Marley Lambert and Dagmar Zdrubecka fell to NU’s No. 42 duo of Justine Leong and Christina Hand, 6-2. MSU was in a close match at No. 3 doubles with Liisa Vehvilainen and Tia Mukherjee down 5-3 to NU’s Sydney Pratt and Aino Alkio.   
 
MSU continued to battle in singles with a reconfigured lineup with junior Ayshe Can out of the lineup. In a daunting task as No. 4 singles, MSU’s Conard hung with NU’s No. 109 Hand before falling 6-1, 6-1, giving NU a 2-0 lead. The Wildcats pushed themselves to within a point of victory at No. 6 singles as Pratt dispatched Spartan Charlotte Gisclon in her third appearance for the Green and White this season. 
 
The Spartans would claim at least a point with a dominant display at No. 5 singles from freshman Juliette Nask whose impressive second set performance aided in a 6-4, 6-1 win over NU’s Alkio. The Wildcats would get the upper hand, clinching the match at No. 2 singles as MSU’s Lambert instigate the comeback, falling 5-7, 2-6…