Pre-Big Ten schedule acts as gauntlet for IU

The IU women's tennis team is about halfway through its trek -- a trek through one of the hardest non-conference schedules in the country. This weekend brings No. 30 Wake Forest, No. 19 Texas A&M and Butler University to the IU Varsity Tennis Center for yet another step along the road.\nThe No. 27 Hoosiers will first square off against Wake Forest (3-1) at 10 a.m. Saturday, with matches against Texas A&M (1-5) and Butler (2-2) Sunday at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., respectively.\nIU coach Lin Loring, who recently saw his Hoosiers jump up two spots in the national ranking, said that his team has a chance to win out the weekend.\n"We're definitely favored against Butler," Loring said. "Both of the other matches should be really good and competitive ... We're probably the underdogs on paper (against Wake Forest and Texas A&M)."\nWake Forest is fresh off of a 5-2 road loss to then-No. 21 Notre Dame. The Demon Deacons opened up the year with three wins and currently have two nationally ranked players -- No. 16 senior Karin Coetzee and No. 17 sophomore Ashlee Davis. The duo is also ranked No. 33 nationally in doubles play.\nTexas A&M, like the Hoosiers, have a tough non-conference schedule with IU being its eighth nationally ranked opponent. Before coming to Bloomington, the Aggies will make a pit stop Saturday at West Lafayette to play No. 46 Purdue, their seventh ranked opponent of the year.\nThe Aggies, who managed to get a first victory at home over then-No. 52 Maryland University earlier this season, currently have two nationally ranked players as well. No. 47 senior Helga Vieira is the defending Big 12 No. 2 singles champion and is nationally ranked in doubles as well at No. 28 with sophomore Anna Lubinsky.\nCoach Loring said he is still somewhat uncertain about his team's doubles play, but he is happy with how his team is playing in singles.\n"We feel (doubles play) is getting better," Loring said. "But we'll probably be experimenting a little more this weekend."\nSophomore Laura McGaffigan, ranked No. 25 in the Midwest Region, is a prime example of the strong singles play that Loring spoke of, sporting a 4-0 record from the No. 3 singles position this year.\n"So far all the teams that we've played have all been pretty strong," McGaffigan said. "So (my singles play against them) helps my confidence out a lot."\nSenior Dora Vastag, ranked No. 90 nationally and No. 12 in the Midwest Region, was forced to leave the team's last match against the University of North Carolina with a pulled quadricep.\n"I've been doing rehab," Vastag said. "It's gotten better every day -- 100 percent now."\nIU lost a 6-1 road decision to Texas A&M in March of last year.\n-- Contact Staff Writer Andy Romey at aromey@indiana.edu.