Loring aims for 17th Big Ten title

After 10 Big Ten matches – including eight wins – it all comes down to this. After 25 matches, grueling road trips, agonizing defeats and thrilling victories, it all comes down to this.\nOn Friday, the IU women’s tennis team will travel to West Lafayette to compete in the Big Ten Championships. After a regular season that began in September with a road trip to Winston-Salem, N.C., and ended last Sunday in Michigan, the matches the No. 30 Hoosiers have been preparing for all season are here. \nThe Hoosiers are the No. 3 seed and will get a bye in the first round. They will take on the winner of No. 63 Michigan State and No. 73 Wisconsin. IU defeated Michigan State 6-1 in March and Wisconsin 7-0 earlier this month.\nThe Hoosiers have already received a bid to the NCAA Regionals and Championships in May. But as a warmup, they have the Big Ten Championships, a tournament they have won 16 times under current coach Lin Loring.\nSenior Brianna Williams, who will be competing in her fourth Big Ten Tournament, said this weekend will prepare the Hoosiers for the championships.\n“It’s definitely a great warm-up because we have some competitive teams in the conference,” Williams said. “It gives us good experience before going to the NCAAs. This is closer to the tournament. It gives you the same atmosphere the NCAAs will have.”\nDespite the heightened emphasis, Loring said competing in the Big Ten Championships will be similar to their dual matches.\n“It’s really not any different (than the regular season),” he said. “You’re still going in, playing matches. The difference is you’ve already played the teams once. You have a little more knowledge of who you’re playing and the lineups compared to the regular season.”\nFreshman Charlotte Martin said because the Hoosiers have competed against the teams, they are more optimistic about their chances this weekend.\n“I think we’ve played every team now so we know the players a bit more,” Martin said. “We know exactly what to expect. I think we’re a bit more confident now. We know how to play to do well.”\nOut of the 11 teams in the conference, nine are ranked, including the No. 1 team in the country, Northwestern. Four of those teams are ranked in the top 50.\nSophomore Lindsey Stuckey said this weekend will not only get the Hoosiers ready for May’s tournament, but it will also test the team’s chemistry and ability.\n“I think (the Big Ten) is definitely more competitive this year,” Stuckey said. “We’ve had a lot more closer matches. It’s not an easy conference. It’s definitely going to be a \nbig challenge.”\nThe tournament will not be the only thing on the Hoosiers’ minds. Like other students, the team will be busy preparing for the finals next week. Despite their busy schedules, the players are used to juggling academics and athletics.\n“The good thing is we have a lot of downtime between the matches,” Williams said. “It does get kind of stressful. But when we get out on the court we have to focus on tennis and forget about everything else.”