Hoosiers return home to beat No. 21 Kentucky

What a difference a few hundred miles make.\nThe IU women’s tennis team spent last weekend in North Carolina, where the weather was comparatively balmy and everything happened according to schedule. Though very competitive, the Hoosiers weren’t able to upset either No. 11 Duke or No. 7 North Carolina. \nThe team returned to Bloomington to some noticeable differences. Icy weather interfered with IU’s schedule, canceling multiple practices before eventually postponing Saturday’s match against Wake Forest. Despite their midweek hurdles, the Hoosiers knocked off their higher-ranked opponent this time around.\n“I told the girls if we played at the level we played last week we could win this match,” IU coach Lin Loring said following Sunday’s 5-2 victory against No. 21 Kentucky.\nNot only did the win improve IU’s season record to 9-2, but it also returned to something the Hoosiers had been accustomed to for the entire first month of the season – winning. Competing with a three-day-old ankle injury, sophomore Alba Berdala demonstrated the team’s determination.\n“We were really motivated,” Berdala said. “We didn’t want to lose again.”\nBerdala and her teammates didn’t take long to gain control of the match. \nThe Hoosiers won two out of three doubles matches to climb to a 1-0 advantage against the Wildcats. Then after senior Laura McGaffigan won 6-4, 6-1 at the No. 2 singles position, Loring said the Hoosiers had sealed the win.\n“Once we won the doubles point, I knew they couldn’t beat us if we won one of the top two singles,” he said. “That’s where (Kentucky’s) strength is.”\nIU almost took both top singles matches. Berdala lost 6-7, 6-3, 1-0 (12-10) to Kim Coventry, who entered Sunday ranked No. 60 nationally in singles. Berdala battled from a 9-7 deficit during the tiebreaker to pull even at 10-10 before losing the next two points and the match. \nIf the match against No. 20 Wake Forest had been played as scheduled, Loring said Berdala wouldn’t have competed due to her injury. But with the match possibly being rescheduled for early March, the Hoosiers could potentially play the Demon Deacons at full strength with an opportunity for another win before the NCAA tournament.\nAs a nonconference match, IU’s meeting against Wake Forest doesn’t have to be rescheduled. If it is played, the match will be in Bloomington, where the Hoosiers are still undefeated following Sunday’s win. \n“We might have not been the favored team to win, but we knew if we played well we could win,” McGaffigan said.