Trio of Wolverines Honored by Big Ten
5/3/2018 11:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
ROSEMONT, Ill. -- The University of Michigan women's tennis team had a trio of Wolverines earn All-Big Ten honors, highlighted by junior Kate Fahey being named the Athlete of the Year, as announced by the conference office Thursday morning (May 3). In addition to Fahey, junior Brienne Minor and sophomore Chiara Lommer each earned All-Big Ten plaudits.
Fahey becomes the fifth Wolverine in school history to be named Athlete of the Year, joining Tina Basle (1988), Sarah Cyganiak (1995, 1997), Denise Muresan (2010, 2011) and Emina Bektas (2014, 2015). Fahey is currently ranked No. 31 by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association with a 27-8 overall singles record and an 18-3 mark at the No. 1 position. Fahey went 9-2 at No. 1 in Big Ten action, while winning two of her three matches at the Big Ten Tournament. She defeated Northwestern's No. 37-ranked Erin Larner in three sets (6-3, 3-6, 6-4) in the championship match (April 29) to help U-M rally for a 4-3 win and its second tournament title in school history. She earned All-Big Ten mention for the third straight season.
Minor
Minor earned her third straight All-Big Ten honor after going 8-1 in Big Ten play at No. 2 and No. 3. Minor went a perfect 3-0 at No. 3 during the Big Ten Tournament, dropping just one set across all three matches. She kept Michigan's hopes alive in a semifinal win against Illinois (April 28), rallying for a three-set win for Michigan's third point. Minor has won seven straight singles matches, compiling an 11-6 overall singles record -- all in dual matches -- after recovering from offseason surgery. She was also Michigan's Sportsmanship honoree.
Lommer
Lommer earned All-Big Ten honors for the first time in her career on the heels of a perfect 9-0 conference season at No. 2 and No. 3. Lommer leads the team in singles wins this season with a 31-9 overall record, going 17-4 in dual matches. The lefty won the ITA Midwest Regional singles title in the fall and is currently on a 12-match winning streak. Lommer clinched back-to-back matches for the Maize and Blue at the Big Ten Tournament, winning in three sets in both the semifinal round against Illinois and in the championship match against Northwestern. Lommer was the last match on the court both days, providing the fourth point both times to seal Michigan's tournament title.
Michigan (17-9) punched its ticket to its 17th consecutive NCAA Tournament by winning the Big Ten Tournament and will travel to Palo Alto, California, to take on Hawaii (12-6) in the first round on May 11 at 11 a.m. PDT. Stanford (18-3) and St. John's (17-5) round out the teams in the regional.
