BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - In only its second appearance this season, the women's tennis team delivered an encouraging performance for head coach Laura Glitz at the IU Regional. The four Boilermakers in attendance finished 6-4 in singles and 5-2 in doubles after largely struggling at home two weeks ago.
Sophomore Marta Ruedas led the team with five wins overall; she beat Miami (Ohio) 6-3, 6-0 in the first round and Marquette 3-6, 6-3, 10-6 in the second. Her other three victories came alongside partner Rafaella Baquerizo in the doubles draw of the tournament. The two made it to the championship match after securing wins in the opening three rounds, but fell to a paring from Notre Dame 8-5 in the final.
Baquerizo was able to add to her success in doubles though, with a singles victory - the first of her collegiate career. The freshman from Guayaquil, Ecuador, defeated Notre Dame in the opening round, and nearly moved to 2-0 during a 4-6, 7-6, 7-10 loss to Northwestern in the second.
Fellow freshman, Alex Sabe, left Bloomington, Indiana, with an identical 1-1 singles record. She too won her first round match, defeating Tennessee 6-1, 6-2; but like Baquerizo, Sabe dropped her second to Northwestern 5-7, 3-6.
In doubles competition, Sabe paired with teammate Deborah Suarez who made her season debut at the three-day tournament. The two finished 2-1 with victories over Miami (Ohio) and Marquette. However, the same Notre Dame team that went on to defeat Purdue's other pairing in the championship match, ended Sabe and Suarez's run in the semifinals.
In singles, Suarez dropped her first match, but recovered with victories against Northwestern and Miami (Ohio), 6-2, 6-0 and 6-3, 6-2 respectively.
The women play on the road again in two weeks at the Big Green Invite in Hanover, New Hampshire.
