IOWA CITY – The 32nd-ranked University of Iowa women’s tennis team secured its fourth victory over a ranked opponent this season with a commanding 4-0 victory over No. 72 Minnesota on Friday night outdoors at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Center.
With the win, Iowa improves to 10-4 overall and 4-1 in Big Ten play, marking its third consecutive victory.
The Hawkeyes started the match by claiming the doubles point. On court one, Anali Kocevar and Mia Liepert defeated No. 76 Tereza Dejnozkova and Nikita Vishwase 6-2, despite a strong comeback. On court two, Daianne Hayashida and Marisa Schmidt earned a decisive 6-2 victory over Jeselle Ante and Sofia Pinto. On court three, Barbora Pokorna and Pia Kranholdt clinched the doubles point after defeating Arina Valitova and Aiva Schmitz 6-4 in a highly contested match.
In singles play, the Hawkeyes secured three straight-set victories. On court three, Schmidt posted a quick 6-4, 6-3 win over Kocevar. At No. 5, Kranholdt followed with a dominant 6-2, 6-4 victory over Pinto. On court two, Hayashida secured a tiebreaker to defeat Liepert 6-0, 7-6 (7-3), clinching the team win.
The remaining singles matches were left unfinished after Iowa secured four points. On court one, No. 106 Dejnozkova was in a close battle with Schmitz 7-5, 2-6, 0-1. At No. 4, Pokorna was leading Valitova 6-1, 5-4. On court six, Vishwase was leading Xie, 6-4, 2-4.
QUOTING HEAD COACH SASHA BOROS
“I’m proud of the team and it was a good first match for us to play outside and then we had to transition in at the very end of singles. We had to deal with the adversity of changing surfaces, and I thought they handled it well. It was a hard-fought battle against a good Minnesota team that we have a lot of respect for. We’re going to regroup and get ready for another great battle on Sunday against Wisconsin.”
UP NEXT
Iowa (10-4, 4-1) will host No. 18 Wisconsin at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Center on Sunday at noon (CT). Admission is free.
No. 32 Iowa 4, No. 72 Minnesota 0
Singles Results
No. 1 – No. 106 Tereza Dejnozkova (UI) vs. Aiva Schmitz (MINN), 7-5, 2-6, 0-1 (unfinished)
No. 2 – Daianne Hayashida (UI) def. Mia Liepert (MINN), 6-0, 7-6 (7-3)
No. 3 – Marisa Schmidt (UI) def. Anali Kocevar (MINN), 6-4, 6-3
No. 4 – Barbora Pokorna (UI) vs. Arina Valitova (MINN), 6-1, 5-4 (unfinished)
No. 5 – Pia Kranholdt (UI) def. Sofia Pinto (MINN), 6-2, 6-4
No. 6 – Nikita Vishwase (UI) vs. Anlin Xie (MINN), 6-4, 2-4 (unfinished)
Order of Finish: 3, 5, 2
Doubles Results
No. 1 – Kocevar / Liepert (MINN) def. No. 76 Dejnozkova / Vishwase (UI), 6-2
No. 2 – Hayashida / Schmidt (UI) def. Ante / Pinto (MINN), 6-2
No. 3 – Pokorna / Kranholdt (UI) def. Valitova / Schmitz (MINN), 6-4
Order of Finish: 1, 2, 3