EAST LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan State women’s tennis team is back on its homecourts this weekend as it takes on a pair of Big Ten foes. The weekend slate opens against No. 65-ranked Purdue on Saturday, March 30th at 11 a.m. Then the Spartans will battle Indiana on Sunday, March 31st action is set to begin at 11 a.m. Both matches will be played at the MSU Indoor Tennis Center.
LAST TIME OUT
Michigan State dropped a pair of Big Ten matches in its last outings against Rutgers, 4-0 and Maryland, 4-1 dropping to 0-4 in B1G play. Against the Terrapins, the Spartans jumped out to an early 1-0 lead after taking the doubles point to open the match. The 37th-ranked duo of Ayshe Can and Nicole Conard was victorious on the No. 1 doubles court and on the No. 2 court, Liisa Vehvilainen and Marley Lambert locked the first point with a hard fought 6-4 victory.
LEADING SPARTANS
Freshman Ria Bhakta leads the team in total wins with 15 total victories with a 9-2 singles record and a 6-4 tandem record. In her last 10 matches, Bhakta has a 6-2 record and won five of her last six complete matches; two of her matches that went unfinished, the Delray Beach, Florida, native was leading in both matches at the time of conclusion.
Two student-athletes trails Bhakta in total victories with 13 in sophomore Issey Purser and senior Ayshe Can. Purser is one win away from tying her 2022-23 season win total (14) and has amassed more singles victories this season (6) than she did her freshman campaign (4). The Ascot, United Kingdom, native has mixed and match on three different courts for the Spartans this season. Purser has appeared on court four the most and has an even 3-3 record, a 2-1 record on court three and 1-2 on court five. In doubles, Purser has had the most success with Bhakta. The freshman-sophomore tandem has teamed in six matches and boasts a 4-2 record.
Can has reached 13 or more wins in all four years with Michigan State, she has an 9-4 doubles record and is the No. 37-ranked doubles tandem with graduate Nicole Conard. Partnering with Conard for the first time this season, the pairing has an 8-2 record and are 1-1 in conference play. In singles competition, Can has accumulated a 4-5 record with three wins on court two and one on court three.
KNOW THE FOE: PURDUE
Purdue enters as the No. 65-ranked team in the latest…
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