EAST LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan State women’s tennis team closed out the regular season on Sunday, as No. 47 Illinois came to town and defeated the Spartans, 4-1, to spoil Senior Day festivities at the MSU Outdoor Tennis Courts.
Sunday was the final home match for four Spartans, as Mary Lewis, Lauren Lemonds, Maja Pietrowicz and Nicole Stephens were all honored during the break between doubles and singles alongside their families and teammates.
The loss sends MSU to 9-13 overall and 1-10 in Big Ten play, while the Fighting Illini improved to 15-8 on the season and 8-3 in the conference standings.
Illinois struck first in doubles action, with the No. 2 Illini pairing of Josie Frazier and Ashley Yeah getting out to an early advantage that they capitalized on, defeating Stephens and sophomore Ayshe Can by a 6-1 score.
The third doubles court turned into a battle, but the Illinois duo of Emily Casati and Kasia Treiber were able to hold on against freshman Charlotte Gisclon and junior Dagmar Zdrubecka, pulling out a 6-4 victory. The teams abandoned the top court, where Kate Duong and Megan Heuser had a 4-3 lead over Lewis and Pietrowicz when action was halted.
Frazier was the first singles player to pick up a win following the MSU Senior Day intermission, defeating Pietrowicz on the third court via a 6-1, 6-2 score that put Illinois up, 2-0.
The No. 4 singles showdown between Heuser and Lemonds featured a close second set after Heuser took the opening set, but Heuser was able to come out victorious with a 6-1, 6-4 win that…
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