Panther Tennis Closes Out Homestand This Weekend

Milwaukee welcomes UIC Saturday, Valpo Sunday

MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee women's tennis team will wrap up its five-match homestand this weekend with a pair of conference matches, starting Saturday.

UWM will play host to UIC on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. at River Glen Elite before a Sunday 10 a.m. match against Valparaiso from North Shore Elite.

Strong Start
Milwaukee is off to a solid start this season, sitting at 8-7 after 15 matches in the spring season. While it is still early, that is a significant improvement from last year's 4-11 start through the first 15 games.

Climbing The Charts
The Milwaukee record book as been under assault the past few seasons, with all 15 school records being set in the past five seasons.

That has not changed this season, as quite a few top-10 performances have already been set, highlighted by freshman Laurie Clark's 21 wins so far this season. The school record is 25, achieved by three Panthers, including current junior Alysa Straub during her freshman season.

Big Home Stand
Milwaukee is in the middle of big five-match homestand – all against conference foes.

The Panthers started the run at home with a heartbreaking 4-3 loss to Detroit on Saturday. Despite falling down 3-1, UWM battled back and showed determination, evening things up at 3-3 before coming up just short in the deciding match.

Then, just one day later, Milwaukee started out slow before a big comeback win over Oakland. The Golden Grizzlies swept UWM in doubles and led early in all but one singles match, only to see the Panthers rally and win four of the first five singles points for the 4-3 win.

Finally, last weekend, UWM swept Green Bay, 7-0, to improve to 2-1 in conference play. The Panthers had to battle through some injuries in doubles action to win the point before marching through singles play for their second sweep of the season.

About UIC
The Flames head into Saturday's match a perfect 3-0 in conference play and 9-5 overall this season. Last weekend, UIC hosted a pair of conference matches, taking down Wright State, 5-2, before sweeping league newcomer Northern Kentucky, 7-0, on Sunday.

UWM and UIC have plenty of common opponents outside of the obvious league foes this season. Both teams lost to Marquette and Akron, and both teams took down Northern Iowa by the same score of 4-3. The lone difference is a Milwaukee loss and UIC win against Northern Illinois.

The Flames' two seniors – Jackie Altansarnai and Ann-Sophie Hahn – have assumed the top-two spots all season for UIC and are the only two having dropped a point in league singles play with 2-1 records. Freshman Rachel Le Comber has a team-leading 17-5 overall record, including an 11-3 mark in spring action.

About Valparaiso
It's been a rough go of things for Valparaiso so far this season, with a 1-13 overall record and a 0-3 mark in conference play heading into the weekend. VU will head to Green Bay on Saturday before taking on Milwaukee on Sunday.

Sophomore Kathleen Hebble leads the way for the Crusaders this season with seven total wins, while playing primarily at the No. 1 spot. Freshman Meg Modesto also seems to have settled in, boasting a 3-2 mark from the No. 4 spot this season.

Follow Along
Fans can follow Milwaukee tennis and get updates from the team on Twitter (@MKE_Tennis) or on Facebook by searching Milwaukee Panther Tennis.

Up Next
The Panthers hit the road for the first time in nearly a month with a road trip to Northeast Ohio next weekend. UWM will take on Cleveland State on Saturday before a Sunday morning contest at Youngstown State.

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Players Mentioned

Alysa Straub: Junior

Laurie Clark: Freshman

Players Mentioned

Alysa Straub
: Junior

Laurie Clark
: Freshman