EAST LANSING, Mich. – Highlighted by freshman Ria Bhakta gritty upset victory over No. 19-ranked Julia Fliegner, Michigan State women’s team falls to in-state B1G rival Michigan, 6-1, on Saturday afternoon at the Outdoor Tennis Center.
The Wolverines kicked off the dual taking the doubles point winning on courts two and three in a 6-0 sweep on each court.
It was a top 40 matchup on the top court as No. 36-ranked tandem of Ayshe Can and Nicole Conard went head-to-head against the No. 7-ranked Kari Miller and Jaedan Brown. Can and Conard held their own against the highly ranked duo, going point for point; but the match would go unfinshed 4-2 in favor of Miller and Brown.
Michigan would go on and win all six individual courts. Courts four, five, one and two would all end in straight sets.
Despite the final score, a pair of freshmen showed a glimpse of a promising future for MSU as Natalie Stasny and Bhakta each pushed their nationally ranked opponents to a third set. On court six,Stasny, a native of Woodbridge, Illinois, bounced back from dropping the first set, 6-1, against No. 109-ranked Piper Charney. In the second set, Stasny would take the second set 7-5. In the deciding set, Piper got the edge to squeeze out the victory, 10-3.
On court three, Bhakta would pull off a come from behind victory over No. 19-ranked Fliegner for the biggest victory of her young career. The Delray Beach, Florida, native worked her way back after dropping the first set, 4-6, to rattle off two-straight set victories (6-4, 1-0 [11-9]) in a true back-and-forth…
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