WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The No. 50 Purdue women's tennis team inched closer to an NCAA tournament bid Friday, taking down Penn State 5-2 inside the Schwartz Tennis Center. The Boilermakers will still likely need to win out or do work at Big Tens; however, this time last season, the program was fighting to merely get into the conference tournament. A win over No. 35 Ohio State at Sunday's home finale may be just enough to extend Purdue's incredible turnaround season.
After falling behind early in doubles against the Nittany Lions, the Boilermakers responded with three of the first four wins in singles.
On court one, Silvia Ambrosio defeated Frederikke Svarre 6-1, 6-2. Seira Shimizu bested Samantha Smith 6-4, 6-1 at the fourth position, and Ena Babic outplayed Gabby O'Gorman 6-0, 7-5 at the second. Meanwhile, Zala Dovnik lost 6-4, 6-1 to Hanna Wikberk on court six.
At 3-2 Purdue, the home team only needed one more point to clinch the dual; however, in a rare occurrence, sophomores Caitlin Calkins and Alex Sabe finished their matches simultaneously side-by-side. The first defeated Bennett Dunn 6-3, 7-6 at the fifth position, while the later bested Shannon Hanley 6-4, 6-4.
First serve against the Buckeyes is scheduled for noon ET.