MWT Beats Ohio, Wins Third Consecutive Big Ten Title/MMT Abides

MWT* won convincingly 5-2 at home this past Sunday, earning their third consecutive Big Ten title. The victory was Michigan's eleventh consecutive victory over their rivals from Ohio.

*Michigan Women's Tennis

Terrific stuff! 3 for 3 in doubles will put fear into any opponent. Brief highlights, and a DB statement. There is also a Gatorade bath. I won't pick on Ohio too hard, as they have a 9-15 record this year. #13 Emina Betkas is only a freshman and she will play another three years hopefully for us. The team only graduates senior and 5 court Michelle Sulahian. Junior 4 court Mimi Nguyen is the only other upperclassman on the roster. I can see this group of players competing for another Big Ten title next year. The immediate challenge is winning the Big Ten Tournament this weekend, and competing for a national title in the NCAAs.

Sadly, not all of our tennis matches fare as well as this one. Michigan men's tennis(MMT) played at Ohio's Varsity Tennis Courts last Sunday, and like many other teams before them, did not beat the Bobcats at home. Junior #8 Evan King defeated #6 Blas Rola convincingly on 1 court, but the rest of the match was all Bobcats.

My eyes. Also, my thermoregulator. Some silly person in Ohio decided that this match should be held outdoors in 45-degree weather with high winds. Per NCAA rules, April matches are only required to be played outdoors when the temperature is above 65 degrees. Some players wore undershirts to keep warm. Our young freshman were apple-cheeked in the cold. The wind was fast up in the bleachers and made it even colder.

The numbers do not tell the true story of how long some points were contested, especially in doubles. Petrone and Bernstein were two players in particular who, on serve, earned multiple deuces in a long back-and-forth with their opponents. Unfortunately only one team was earning consistent breaks in singles and in doubles, and they were not the Wolverines. Regardless, Ohio's 2 court #12 Chase Buchanan is a senior and will graduate. The Wolverines may be in a position to win the conference if everyone improves, King comes back, and Bernstein gets his serve back up to speed. Bernstein used his underhanded serve in doubles, but mostly would forehand the ball into play in singles. His serving was about as effective as other Michigan players' serves. Alex Buzzi lost his cool after dropping the first doubles match and seemed dejected afterwards. Brown substituted for Buzzi on 6 court.

Ohio's players were big, strong, and aggressive with their shots. Many times they hit the ball harder and closer to the top of the net than the Michigan players and obtained the advantage of force in that manner. There were also big servers playing for the Bobcats, especially on 3 and 4 court.

It cannot be overstated how many breaks the Wolverines allowed in this match. Many times Blue managed to break back but the numbers were heavily in Ohio's favor.

Michigan has earned a 2 seed in the Big Ten tournament, and earned its most conference wins(9) since 1999. Michigan's last Big Ten title was earned in 1996.