By Nicholas Moreano
The Iowa women’s tennis team is tough to beat at home, but in Monday’s matchup against the No. 50 Wichita State, the Hawkeyes’ 4-3 win didn’t come until the final singles match.
The match started on the outdoor courts at the Hawkeye Tennis & Recreation Complex, but because of the weather, the teams finished inside. Despite the change of scenery, sophomore Adorabol Huckleby was the last one standing after she defeated Marta Bellucco in three sets (6-4, 6-7 [0-3], 6-3), to give her team its ninth victory at home and first win over a ranked opponent since 2014, when they defeated No. 42 Illinois.
“Today was a great team win,” head coach Sasha Schmid said in a release. “We are grateful for the opportunity to play a quality team like Wichita State on a late addition to our schedule.”
The match started with the Hawkeyes taking the doubles point. The No. 1 duo of freshman Elise van Heuvelen and Huckleby defeated Fatima Bizhukova and Gabriela Porubin (6-3). Then, senior Aimee Tarun and junior Montana Crawford defeated Giulia Guidetti and Marta Bellucco (6-4) to secure the doubles point.
In singles play junior Zoe Douglas picked up a win at No. 2 with her 6-3, 6-1 victory over Porubin. Junior Anastasia Reimchen fell at No. 3 to Tanaporn Thongsing (6-2, 6-1). At No. 1, van Heuvelen gave the Hawkeyes a 3-1 lead after defeating Guidetti (6-3, 6-2).
At the No. 4 spot, Crawford fell to Bizhukova (7-5, 6-1). Then sophomore Kristen Thoms lost in three sets to Ting-Ya Hsu (7-5, 7-6 [4-0]).
With the match tied at 3-3, Huckleby ground out a win to give the Hawkeyes their 15th win of the season.
“We’ve been in this spot a few times where the opponent gets to three relatively quickly, and we do our best to claw our way back into it,” Wichita State head coach Colin Foster said in a release. “Marta saved match points in the second [set] and had some momentum going early in the third, but in the end it was a bit too steep of a hill to climb. For [Hsu], this was another step in her progression. She has been too inconsistent in her practice and her play, and today she was awesome in finding ways to win, as were Tana and Fatima.”
Next up, the Hawkeyes will hit the road to face Michigan at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in Ann Arbor, then Michigan State the following day at 11 a.m. in East Lansing.