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Wednesday, Nov. 27
The Indiana Daily Student

sports

IU to take on OSU, No. 31 ND

IU will play host to Ohio State at 4 p.m. Friday and Notre Dame at 10 a.m. Sunday, but the match against the Irish is looking to be closer than close.\n"We'll be favored against Ohio State. They have some injuries -- they're kind of having a down year," said IU coach Lin Loring. "Notre Dame should be a really close match."\nThe statistics back up Loring's analysis.\nNo. 35 IU, now the Big Ten's second-place team, shares seven common opponents with the No. 31 Irish. Both are 3-4 against them, differing only with IU's defeat of Wisconsin and Notre Dame's defeat of the University of Nevada Las Vegas.\nThe teams' records even indicate a highly contested match as the Hoosiers rest at 10-8, 4-1 in the Big Ten, and the Irish sit at 9-8.\nBut Loring's squad is accustomed to close matches.\nTheir most recent one came last Sunday against then-No. 35 Wisconsin. IU was ranked No. 36 at the time.\nThe Hoosiers rolled over the Badgers in a 5-2 victory, capturing the all-important doubles point at the No. 2 spot. There, sophomore Laura McGaffigan and freshman Brianna Williams battled to victory from being down 7-3. The contest lasted for one hour and 40 minutes.\n"(The doubles point is) really important," Williams said. "It really makes us a lot more confident going into our singles matches."\nThe doubles point is important also because IU has often split singles matches in its close wins, Loring said.\nWith the Irish threatening another close match, the doubles point will likely be a factor. IU is 10-1 when garnering it, and has yet to win without it.\nNotre Dame has two of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's top 100 in No. 37 Catrina Thompson and No. 90 Brook Buck, with a hotshot doubles tandem in No. 4 Thompson and her sister Christian.\nBut IU has a giant-slayer in senior Dora Vastag, who has gone 8-4 against top-100 foes this spring.\n"I have a really challenging person to play every week," said Vastag, who has bounced around the 100 mark all season. "It really keeps me motivated."\nThe Hoosiers face a different opponent in Ohio State (6-13, 1-3 Big Ten).\nThe Buckeyes have lost five of their last six matches and sit at eighth in the conference.\nIU shares six common opponents with OSU, but OSU has gone 0-6 against the pool and IU has gone 3-3.\nThe contests are slated to be played at the IU Varsity Tennis Courts. If the weather doesn't allow it, they will be moved indoors to the IU Varsity Tennis Center.\nBloomington's weather is forecasted to be sunny.\n-- Contact Staff Writer Andy Romey at aromey@indiana.edu.

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