Nov. 5, 2009
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; - The Penn State women's tennis team travels to West Lafayette, Ind. this weekend for the Purdue Invitational. Play runs Friday through Sunday at the Schwartz Tennis Center. The tournament is the last of the Nittany Lions' fall schedule.
"The team is looking to wrap up the fall season on a high note," said head coach Dawna Prevette. "It's nice to see a few conference teams in the fall."
Other teams playing in the tournament include Marquette and Miami of Ohio, as well as Big Ten rivals Purdue and Michigan State. Singles and doubles play begin Friday, with singles play continuing through Saturday and doubles action on Sunday.
Last time out, seniors Sarah Lotto (Toronto, Canada) and Lauren McCarthy (Danbury, Conn.) and freshmen Amy Simidian (Carlstadt, N.J.) and Sarah Henderson (Auckland, New Zealand) represented Penn State at the Wilson/ITA Atlantic Regional. Simidian shined in an upset victory over No. 107 Ragini Acharya of William & Mary, 6-4, 6-4, in the second round of the main singles draw. She later fell to Catherine Kellner of Marshall, 1-6, 6-3, 6-2.
In other singles action, Lotto cruised through the qualifying round with two straight-set victories to advance to the main draw. McCarthy picked up a 7-5, 6-0 win over Kelly Tidwell of Richmond in the first singles round.
Following this weekend's tournament, the Nittany Lions take a break from competition until next semester. The Lions kick off spring play on Saturday, Jan. 23 when they host the Bison of Bucknell at 11 a.m. at the Penn State Indoor Tennis Center.