Homestand

After winning against Michigan State and losing to Michigan last weekend, the IU women's tennis team continues its homestand with back to back matches over the weekend. On Saturday the Hoosiers (9-12, 1-5 Big Ten) play host to Iowa (6-13, 2-5) and Sunday meet Minnesota, which is currently first in the Big Ten (13-5, 6-1). \nIowa has lost three-straight matches, and Minnesota has won its past four.\nBut, coach Lin Loring said he believes both matches will be very competitive.\n"Depending on who we have in the line-up, if we play really well against Iowa we could win," Loring said. "But against Minnesota everything would have to go right for us to have a shot."\nJunior Linda Tran said she is excited about the team's chances this weekend.\n"With Karie (Schlukebir) in the lineup again this weekend we will match up well against Iowa," Tran said. "It's a very winnable match for us. Against Minnesota they are a tougher team this year, especially with some added depth on their team from last year. If we go out and fight as hard as we did last weekend, anything could happen."\nDown the stretch, Iowa has lost crucial doubles matches which could play to the Hoosiers' advantage. Freshman Sarah Batty will team up with junior Martina Grimm in the doubles match for the Hoosiers. The two lead IU with 20 victories in the doubles match.\n"We will hopefully continue being successful in the doubles point, and claim that in both matches," Batty said.\nAlthough Schlukebir has returned to the lineup, the Hoosiers are still having trouble with injuries.\n"Martina and Dominika (Walterova) aggravated their injuries more this week, but they have been smart about practicing with their injuries and are slowly recovering," Tran said. "They should be ready to go once Saturday and Sunday come around."\nMinnesota freshman Nischela Reddy was named Big Ten Player-of-the-Week last week. She is 20-12 for the season and holds a 6-1 record in the Big Ten. Last week against Northwestern, Reddy won No. 5 singles (6-2, 6-2) and teamed up with sophomore Angela Buergis to win the No. 2 doubles spot 8-6. This helped the Golden Gophers end the Wildcats' 29-match Big Ten winning streak. This was also the second week in a row that a Minnesota player was named the Big Ten Player-of-the-Week. Senior Michaela Havelkova claimed the honors two weeks ago.\nDespite Iowa's poor record, Batty is not overconfident.\n"All matches in the Big Ten are a challenge, and all are competitive," she said. \nBoth matches will be held at the IU Outdoor Varsity Courts at 10 a.m.