After a coaching change and numerous injuries and illnesses that caused constant lineup changes, IU women’s tennis finished its season this weekend with a .500 record and a win in the conference tournament.
IU Coach Ramiro Azcui said at the beginning of the season his goal for the team was to make the Big Ten Tournament. By finishing with a 14-14 overall record and a 4-7 mark in the Big Ten, the Hoosiers captured the 10th and final spot in the conference tournament.
They did not stop there.
Although IU lost to Iowa earlier this season, the 10-seed Hoosiers upset the seven-seed Hawkeyes in the first round of the conference tournament at the University of Illinois with a 4-2 win.
IU moved on to the second round and faced off against the No. 2-seeded Michigan Wolverines, who are ranked No. 10 in the NCAA.
The Hoosiers lost to the Wolverines 4-0 earlier this year, and the end result was the same in a 4-0 shutout Friday.
Although this loss ended the Hoosiers’ season, Azcui said his team has nothing to be ashamed of.
“I am thrilled,” Azcui said. “All the players worked so hard and they were able to put themselves in position to win, which showed a lot of character.”
The match against Michigan was played indoors due to inclement weather. Because other Big Ten teams had to play as well, there were a limited number of courts. Therefore, in the singles play, each team had to draw names out of a hat to decide who would play first.
Azcui said he was happy that both his seniors, Kim Schmider and Paula Gutierrez, were able to play in their last match for IU.
“It was a strange match because instead of six we were only playing on three courts,” Azcui said. “I’m glad that both of them got to play their last collegiate match and send them out on a positive note.”
Gutierrez’s match went unfinished in the second set, and Schmider went three sets but was unable to get the win.
“It’s sad that the seniors are departing, but I’m so proud of them,” Azcui said. “We are very optimistic for the future of this program, and I think we are going to do some great things.”
