Tennis: Women split opening event while men idle

Wildcat women’s tennis went 1-1 at the ITA Kickoff this weekend, while the men had the weekend off.

Northwestern lost 4-2 to Arizona State in the opening round of the event, held in Nashville. Despite the loss, Julie Byrne (first singles) and Briana Crowley (fifth singles) helped NU win two singles matches while the third doubles team of Christina Hand and Inci Ogut won the Wildcats their only doubles point of the contest.

ASU gave NU a taste of its own medicine after the ‘Cats defeated the Sun Devils 4-2 in the ITA Kick-Off in 2016.

NU was unable to follow up last year’s success in the event, when it advanced out of the Kick-Off Weekend and clinched a spot in the National Indoor Championships for the first time since 2014.

Head coach Claire Pollard’s team had a short memory, though, and finished out the weekend by thrashing Penn 4-0. Northwestern, helped by Ogut, Hand and Crowley, won three singles as well as two doubles matches. The victory marked the first dual win of the season for the 2020 campaign.

NU next faces Vanderbilt and Princeton this weekend at home.