Wayne State University Athletics

Women's Tennis 2/29/2024 2:40:00 PM Matthew Jurek, Sports Information Graduate Assistant

Women's Tennis to Begin March Schedule at Home Against Hillsdale and #11-Indianapolis

The Warriors will play a pair of contests before their annual Spring Break trip in Florida.

DETROIT -- Following two victories and a fifth-place showing last weekend at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) National Indoor Championship, the #10th-ranked Wayne State University women's tennis team returns home this week for a pair of matches against Midwest Region opponents. The Warriors will battle Hillsdale College on Friday, March 1, before playing their second contest of 2024 against #11-Indianapolis on Sunday, March 3.

Both match-ups will be held inside the Duchene Athletic Facility, with each day also featuring men's tennis action following the women's matches. First serve vs. the Chargers is slated for 1:30 p.m., while WSU and UIndy will square off at 11 a.m. to conclude the weekend.

ITA NATIONAL RANKINGS UPDATE
The ITA released another edition of its Top 25 National Rankings on Wednesday afternoon (February 28), which served as the third round of rankings for 2024. The coaches poll ranked Wayne State 10th in the country following nine matches this campaign - an increase from the last poll two weeks ago (February 14) that had the Warriors in 14th.

The Top 10 includes Barry, Nova Southeastern, West Alabama, Saint Leo, Washburn, Flagler, Lynn, Columbus State, Cameron, and Wayne State. The Green and Gold are the sole GLIAC representative in the Top 25.

LAST TIME OUT
Wayne State received an opportunity to compete in the ITA's National Women's Team Indoor Championship last weekend in Kearney, Neb., and the Ernest Grundy Tennis Center. The tournament showcased eight of the top women's Division II teams in a three-day event.

After falling to #2-Nova Southeastern 4-0 on the first day of the weekend, the Green and Gold rebounded nicely with a pair of victories. That included a 4-1 win over #6-Columbus State and a 4-2 triumph against the host Nebraska Kearney squad, which promoted WSU to fifth in the final running order for the tournament.

The Warriors were the seven seed in the eight-team championship, which consisted of the Sharks, Cougars, Lopers, Flagler, West Alabama, Barry, and Saint Leo.

VS. HILLSDALE (3/1)
Hillsdale, a former GLIAC member for 42 years between 1975 and 2017 and now a member of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC), has played seven matches for a 2-5 ledger. The Chargers' triumphs have come over Edinboro (6-1) on the road and Lake Superior State (4-1) at home. HC has not forgotten about the conference it used to call home, as it has squared off with five GLIAC schools in its seven contests so far. With WSU and Saginaw Valley State next on the docket for the Chargers, Hillsdale will have played every GLIAC program with the exception of Grand Valley State.

The Warriors are 11-2 against its old league rivals since the 2002 season, but the two squads have not played one another since a 6-1 road victory for Wayne State on September 24, 2021. The last time Hillsdale visited the Motor City was during 2016-17, its final season in the GLIAC.

The Chargers are coached by Liam Fraboulet in his second season. The French native was named head coach in the summer of 2022.

VS. INDIANAPOLIS (3/3)
Wayne State and Indianapolis first met this season on Sunday, February 11, with the host Greyhounds claiming a 4-2 win inside the UIndy Tennis Center. UIndy has played in and split two matches after that contest, falling at Division I Butler University 4-2, but downing #25-Findlay 7-0. That puts Indianapolis, the #11th-ranked program by the ITA, at 4-2 ahead of this Sunday's affair.

The guests from Indianapolis will be making their first appearance in Detroit since April 10, 2004, but that match-up was held at the Eastside Tennis and Fitness Club in what was a home affair for the Green and Gold. WSU fell 6-3 in that match, which was the first of just six total meetings since 2004-05. Wayne State claimed one triumph (6-3) on March 2, 2012.

The Greyhounds have several nationally ranked players, including four within the ITA's Top 50 Singles Rankings. Tyffaine Pais (seventh), Benedetta Sensi (19th), Ana Hollweg (25th), and Diane Flament (45th) all appear on the list, with Valentine Colin (14th) and Maissane Aik (15th) featured on the Midwest Region rankings. Flament and Sensi are the 19th-ranked doubles team in Division II, and second in the Midwest behind WSU's Anais Ruyssen (Nantes, France) and Marta Komar (Inowroclaw, Poland).

The Greyhounds are coached by Malik Tabet in his 12th season at the helm of the program. Tabet has led Indianapolis to a 183-50 (.785) overall record and a 54-4 (.931) ledger in the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC). He is assisted by Nastassia Chamoun, Carlos Thireau Cuco, and Milan Jankovic.

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Players Mentioned

Marta Komar: 5' 9"; Redshirt Junior

Anais Ruyssen: 5' 9"; Redshirt Junior

Players Mentioned

Marta Komar
: 5' 9"; Redshirt Junior

Anais Ruyssen
: 5' 9"; Redshirt Junior