April 4, 2004
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The Purdue women's tennis team suffered a 4-3 loss to Wisconsin at the Lafayette Sports Center on Sunday. The 52nd-ranked Boilermakers dropped to 7-9 (2-3 Big Ten) with the loss, while the Badgers moved to 8-9 (1-3 Big Ten).
Purdue found itself in an early hole after Wisconsin claimed the doubles point with wins at No. 1 and No. 2. The Boilermakers rallied in singles, however. Despite a loss by senior Melissa Woods at No. 6, Purdue reeled off victories in the next two matches that came off the court; freshman Alyssa Rodriguez beat Kaylan Caiati 6-2, 6-4 at No. 4, and junior Shawna Zuccarini defeated Teresa Gonzaga 6-3, 6-2 at No. 5.
Wisconsin stopped the Boilermaker streak with a win at No. 1, but junior Amy Walgenbach tied the score at 3-all with a 7-6, 6-1 victory over Lindsay Martin at No. 3.
The outcome of the match came down to No. 2 singles. After narrowly taking the first set 7-6, Wisconsin's Shana McElroy downed Purdue senior Gretchen Haynor 7-6, 6-1 to give the Badgers their first win in league play this spring.
Purdue head coach Mat Iandolo hoped for a better ending, but was not surprised by the result.
"This match went like I thought it could go," Iandolo said. "We knew it was going to be close, and we knew it could go either way."
The Boilermakers will look to rebound from their 0-2 weekend when they travel to Ohio State and Penn State on April 10 and 11. Iandolo believes Purdue has plenty of good tennis left to play.
"I don't see any reason why we can't go on another winning streak," Iandolo said. "We just have to keep our heads up and address the problems that hurt us this weekend."
Wisconsin 4, #52 Purdue 3Singles1. Katie McGaffigan (UW) def. Hala Sufi (PU) 7-5, 6-32. Shana McElroy (UW) def. Gretchen Haynor (PU) 7-6, 6-1 *3. Amy Walgenbach (PU) def. Lindsay Martin (UW) 7-6, 6-14. Alyssa Rodriguez (PU) def. Kaylan Caiati (UW) 6-2, 6-45. Shawna Zuccarini (PU) def. Teresa Gonzaga (UW) 6-3, 6-26. Caitlin Burke (UW) def. Melissa Woods (PU) 6-2, 6-4Doubles1. Martin/McGaffigan (UW) def. Haynor/Woods (PU) 8-52. Burke/Gonzaga (UW) def. Zuccarini/Sufi (PU) 8-23. Lara Burgarello/Rodriguez (PU) def. Caiati/McElroy (UW) 8-3
Order of singles finish: 6, 4, 5, 1, 3, 2Order of doubles finish: 2, 1, 3
* Denotes match-clinching win.
Purdue: 7-9 (2-3 Big Ten)Wisconsin: 8-9 (1-3 Big Ten)
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