Women’s Tennis Returns to Work at Notre Dame

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Michigan State women’s tennis returns to work on Saturday, Jan. 21, as the Spartans hit the road to face off against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in an 11 a.m. first serve from Eck Tennis Pavilion.
 
#UNMATCHED APPROACH
The Spartans hit the courts for the second time this season after dispatching with the Toledo Rockets last Sunday on the road. MSU tallied a 5-2 decision bolstered by a clean sweep in the doubles competition. Liisa Vehvilainen, a sophomore from Turku, Finland, notched a 6-1 first set victory and battled her way through the second set against Shalini Tallamraju to secure the clinch win at the No. 3 singles position. Vehvilainen completed a 6-1, 6-4 showing in her MSU dual match debut, notching the first clinch of the season by a Spartan. The Green & White improved to 6-3 on opening day in the Kim Bruno era, which dates to the 2016-17 season. MSU climbed to 4-3 in its first match of the season since the 2017 dual campaign began.
 
DOUBLE TROUBLE
Through the fall campaign and first dual match of the year, Michigan State has solidified a strong presence on the doubles courts. Ayshe Can and Vehvilainen lead the way at the top spot for the Green & White, boasting a 5-3 overall record together highlighted by an 8-7(5) ranked victory over then-No. 58 Clarissa Hand and Maria Shusharina of Northwestern during the fall tournament slate. Can and Vehvilainen published a 7-5 result at No. 1 doubles against Toledo, downing the Rocket pairing of Cassie Alcala and Sloane Teske. Elsewhere on the doubles courts, the duo of Issey Purser and Dagmar Zdrubecka boast one of the best records on the team with a 4-0 overall ledger paired with a 1-0 start after their win at Toledo last week.
 
SCOUTING THE FIGHTING IRISH
Under the guidance of head coach Alison Silverio, Notre Dame prepares for its first dual match of the 2023 season on Saturday against Michigan State. The Fighting Irish are fresh off a 13-12 overall season a year ago with a first round exit in the 2022 ACC Tournament against Florida State. Notre Dame had one doubles pairing reach the NCAA Women’s Tennis Individual Championships a year ago, with Maria Olivia Castedo and Paige Freeman dropping a 6-3, 6-3, straight-set decision to Vanderbilt’s Anna Ross and Holly…