The Notre Dame men's and women's tennis teams continued their non-conference schedules over the weekend. The women had one match, joining the hockey team in Madison, Wisconsin, to take on the No. 25 Badgers. Meanwhile, the men first traveled to face Michigan on Friday, then returned home to take on Auburn and Toledo on Saturday.
Things didn't get off to a stellar start for the Irish, as the Wolverines handed Notre Dame its third straight loss and biggest of the spring. The doubles team of sophomore Evan Lee and freshman Chase Thompson did get a win but the Irish were unable to secure the doubles point. Junior Yu Zhang helped the Irish avoid the shutout with a 1-6, 7-6, 1-0 (5) win in the No. 6 slot. However, Michigan had already secured the overall victory by the time Zhang's match concluded.
Despite this, the Irish bounced back in a big way on their home court on Saturday. The combinations of sophomore Sebastian Dominko and senior Jean-Marc Malkowski and juniors Brian Bilsey and Nil Giraldez, respectively, won their matches 6-3 to give the Irish the doubles point over Auburn. After singles play initially produced a 1-1 stalemate, the Irish took the last four matches to finish. Malkowski, Giraldez, Zhang and Dominko all brought home victories, with Zhang and Malkowski needing just 2 sets to help lead the Irish to a 5-1 victory.
Shortly thereafter, the Irish started their match with the Rockets and picked up where they left off. The Dominko-Malkowski and Lee-Thompson duos came through to give Notre Dame the doubles point once again. The Irish made quick work of Toledo in singles play, with Thompson, Zhang and Malkowski sweeping through the competition for a 4-0 win.
After a full week off, the women's team came out slow in Wisconsin. The Irish lost both doubles matches and were trailing in the third when the Badgers clinched the doubles point. Senior Julia Andreach (6-2, 6-2) and junior Nibi Ghosh (6-4, 6-4) won singles matches in the No. 2 and No. 6 slots, respectively. However, the Badgers took the other four singles showdowns to secure a 5-2 win that stopped Notre Dame's winning streak at three.
The women's team will now start a five-game homestand that will carry them into ACC play. It begins Friday at 3:30 p.m. against DePaul, with a Sunday doubleheader against Butler (11:00 a.m.) and UIC (3:00 p.m.). The men are two games into a stretch of nine straight at home. Next up are matches with Illinois State (12:00 p.m.) and Chicago State (5:00 p.m.) on Saturday.
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