Tennis Downed at Penn State

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – No. 71-ranked Michigan State women’s tennis was downed on the road at Penn State, 4-1, to start the Big Ten season.

Action began on the doubles court with the Spartans top tandem of No. 38-ranked Ayshe Can and Nicole Conard sweeping through the pairing of Olivia Dorner and Karly Friedland in clean fashion, 6-0.

Following a loss on court three for MSU, the doubles point came down to the pairing of Ria Bhakta and Marley Lambert going toe-to-toe with Sofiya Chekhlystova and Yvonne Zuffova. In a back-and-forth matchup, the Nittany Lions got the edge and the doubles point with a 6-4 victory.

Penn State hot steam continued into singles competition to clinch the dual with straight sweeps on courts three (6-0, 6-0), one (6-2, 6-2) and four (7-6, 6-1).

Bhakta continues to impress in her first season, securing the Spartans only point on court five as she took down Karly Friedland 6-3, 6-2. The Delray Beach, Florida, native now has nine singles victories which leads the team.  

Michigan State will have a quick turnaround as it faces Youngstown State on Saturday, March 16. The match is set to begin at 10 a.m.