Captain's Log with Lindsey Howard: Rivalry Week
4/3/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Captain's Log with Lindsey Howard
FRIDAY, APRIL 3 -- Rivalry Week
Hello everyone! I just want to start off by saying that the crowd at the Varsity Tennis Center this past weekend, especially Sunday, was unbelievable! In my four years here, that was the biggest crowd I have ever played for, so thank you! On Saturday, we played a great match against Wisconsin. We won all three doubles matches, which is something we haven't done a whole lot of this season. I think everyone came out aggressive and we all played well. We also competed well in singles, winning five of the six matches. Kari Wig played at No. 6 in her first dual-match of the season and she won in a third-set 10-point tiebreaker! Great job, Kari! The next day we played Northwestern, the No. 1-ranked team in the country, and they were tough. Unfortunately, we lost at Nos. 2 and 3 doubles, but Chisako and Tania pulled out a great win in a tiebreaker at No. 1. Everyone battled hard in singles, but Northwestern won the big points in the first sets and carried that momentum through the rest of the match. However, Denise came back to win in a third set at No. 4 and put a point up on the board for us. After the match, I think everyone realized that we can compete with any team in the country.
For those of you who don't know, Ronni and Teryn were accomplished college and professional tennis players. Ronni was a four-time All-American in singles and doubles and reached No. 30 in the WTA doubles rankings. Teryn was a three-time All-American in singles and doubles and reached No. 59 in the WTA doubles rankings. It's always fun when we get a chance to play the coaches, but trust me when I say that it doesn't happen very often. Personally, I think they are scared! They are scared they're going to lose! Last season, Ronni and Teryn challenged Chisako and Tania in a pro set and the coaches lost! Since then, they haven't played any of us in doubles until last week. At the end of practice, Ronni and Teryn challenged each doubles team to a 10-point tiebreaker. I just want to let everyone know that they lost all three tiebreakers with Denise and I crushing them 10-4! We never even gave them a chance! We really shook their confidence and I think they took it pretty hard, so I have a feeling that they won't return to the courts for a while.
Being that it is March Madness, I feel that I should comment on the tournament. Can you believe that Michigan State is in the Final Four in Detroit! They are going to have so many fans at their game. I didn't fill out a bracket this year and I'm wishing I did because I've really been getting into the games. The Villanova-Pittsburgh game was awesome! I'm hoping that I will be able to catch some of the games while on the road this weekend, but if not, I will definitely be watching the championship game on Monday!
We hit the road this weekend to play Ohio State and Penn State. Whenever we play Ohio State, it is a big weekend for me because not only are they Michigan's biggest rival, but my dad went to OSU. So of course I have that extra incentive to win so that I can talk some trash to my dad. I'm actually excited about going to Columbus because Ohio State built a new tennis facility, so I'm looking forward to playing on their new courts. The following weekend we have Texas A&M and Purdue at home. The match against Purdue is my LAST home match at the Varsity Tennis Center. My parents, who haven't been to Ann Arbor to visit me all year, are coming in for Senior Day, so I'm really looking forward to seeing them. Plus, whenever your parents come into town they pay for nice dinners on Main Street and take you shopping!
Thanks for reading and Go Blue!
Players Mentioned
