No. 29 Hoosiers nab 2 wins over regional rivals

As the school year comes to a close, so will senior captain Brianna Williams’ college tennis career. On Senior Day, Williams finished her last home match victorious as the No. 29 Hoosiers defeated No. 58 Illinois 4-3 Saturday and Purdue 4-3 Sunday. \nIn their last home matches of the season, the Hoosiers beat two of their close rivals and improved both their record and their chances of getting into the NCAA Tournament.\nWith the two wins, IU tied Michigan for the second-best record in the Big Ten at 7-1. Undefeated Northwestern (8-0) holds the top spot. The Hoosiers have an overall record of 18-5. \nThe Illinois match marked the first one this season in which the Hoosiers lost the doubles point but ended up winning. \nThe Purdue match was especially memorable for Williams, who was honored afterwards for her four-year commitment to the team. After the victory, players and coaches gathered on the court to thank Williams. Players wore shirts that said “We love our senior” and “Chance made us teammates, choice made us friends.” \nJunior Sigrid Fischer said Williams has always been there for her. Along with junior Alba Berdala, freshmen Charlotte Martin and Myriam Sopel will live with Fischer and Williams next semester.\n“Brianna has always been not just a teammate to me but a great friend,” Fischer said. “She’s just such a great support for me. As soon as I came in as a freshman, she was just always there. I’m really close to her, and that’s why it’s even harder for me to see her leave.” \nBittersweet about leaving, Williams said she is proud of her time spent at IU.\n“I had a lot of different feelings: excitement and sad at the same time,” Williams said. “I got really sad because my teammates made me these shirts. They were so cute, and I started crying before the match. I know I’ve competed well here my last four years. I’m definitely sad it’s my last home game, but I know that the season’s still not over.” \nIU coach Lin Loring said he was proud of her dedication to the team and the way she captained the Hoosiers.\n“This year, with four freshman out of eight scholarship players, leadership was really key because it’s really easy for freshmen to kind of lose their way academically and tennis-wise,” Loring said. “Brianna has just been a great team leader as far as supporting everybody and pointing everybody in the right direction. She’s just been an unbelievable team leader this year.” \nJunior Alba Berdala said Williams has been a great influence on her for the past three years.\n“My experience at IU would not be the same without her,” Berdala said. “She has been such an amazing player and having such an input into every single one of our games this year. We will miss her so much.” \nHowever, the weekend was important not just for Williams but for the team’s chances in the upcoming Big Ten and NCAA tournaments.\nLoring said he was pleased with the team’s Big Ten standing and their chances of getting into the NCAAs.\n“At this point in the season, you’ve got to really not have bad losses on your record,” Loring said. “(Beating) teams below you is really important. We have a really clean record so far. The fact that we can’t finish less than third in the Big Ten is really good.” \nThe Hoosiers will travel to Penn State on Friday to take on the Nittany Lions. They head to Ann Arbor, Mich., Sunday to compete against No. 26 Michigan.