IU entered its matches this weekend at .500 on the season and came away with two 7-0 victories against DePaul and IUPUI to snap a three-match losing streak.
Senior Kim Schmider could not pair with her usual partner, sophomore Madison Appel, due to an illness for Schmider. The duo is the No. 19-ranked doubles team in the NCAA, but Appel teamed up with sophomore Natalie Whalen at the No. 1 doubles spot instead, and the sophomores scored a 7-5 victory against DePaul and beat IUPUI 6-2.
Schmider was well enough to play in the match against DePaul but not IUPUI. She teamed with sophomore Caitlin Bernard in the No. 3 doubles position, and the two won 6-3. Schmider also played in the No. 6 singles spot and beat IUPUI’s Milica Tesic 6-3, 6-2.
IU Coach Ramiro Azcui said Schmider was only able to practice for about 30 minutes total in the two days leading up to the matches, so he was impressed by her contributions both on and off the court Saturday.
“I asked both Kim and Paula to talk to the team in between the doubles and singles to try and fire the troops up, and they did just that,” Azcui said.
Bernard was the only one to lose her first set against DePaul. Despite being down, she fought back and scored a 3-6, 6-0, 6-2 victory against Ana Vladutu. Bernard followed that up with a 6-1, 6-0 victory against Samantha Mayer from IUPUI. Both of Bernard’s wins came at the No. 3 singles position.
“I was being attacked the whole first set, so I started to be more aggressive,” Bernard said. “I started to step in and take it early and just got on a roll.”
In the match against IUPUI, Azcui played all three of his freshmen in the same match for the first time. Emma Love and Anna McCoy got their first career victories in the dual match season for singles, and Pauline Jahren also won both her singles matches.
Azcui said he feels comfortable using any one of his players right now, thanks to the improvements his freshmen have made throughout the year.
“It’s to the point where I feel confident to put anybody out there,” Azcui said.
The Hoosiers are now 7-5 on the season, and Azcui said the win against DePaul was something he thought the team needed.
“We came out and showed how strong we can play,” Azcui said. “It was just a great day for everybody, and hopefully we can continue this momentum.”.
