Women’s Tennis
Notre Dame women’s tennis is currently on a roll. After starting the season 2-1, the Irish have gone on a four-game winning streak to put their record at 6-1. A 0-4 loss to a tough Vanderbilt squad added fuel to the fire, and the Irish quickly bounced back to sweep Penn 4-0. They went on to beat Navy 7-0, Ball State 7-0 and Xavier 6-1, all in the same weekend. This weekend, the women’s team stays in South Bend to take on Purdue on Friday and UIC on Sunday.
The Irish are led by No. 58 ranked sophomore Bianca Molnar, who has held down the fort at one-singles throughout the first weeks of the season. Molnar has yet to lose a match or even a set at the singles position and has also been a key contributor in the doubles lineup, partnering with senior Bojana Pozder and freshman Sophia Holod. Molnar will face an imposing challenge on Friday against Purdue sophomore Ece Gencer, who is also undefeated and coming off of two clutch singles wins against Yale and Columbia. Look forward to some stellar shotmaking and dynamic point construction in this heavyweight matchup.
Despite starting its season 2-0 with a sweep over Butler and a tight 4-3 win over Illinois State, Purdue now sits at 2-2. Last weekend’s Ivy League road trip culminated in a 2-5 loss to Columbia and a crushing 1-4 loss to Yale. The losses notwithstanding, the Boilermakers showed grit against top-level opponents, battling through multiple ten-point tiebreaks to threaten a comeback. The aforementioned Gencer defeated Columbia’s Malak El Allami in a thrilling 4-6, 7-5, 1-0 (11-9) comeback, inspiring teammate Kayal Gownder’s 5-7, 6-4, 1-0 (11-9) victory against Emily Baek. These gut-wrenching losses are often catalysts for future success in tennis and this gritty Purdue team will look to get back to its winning ways on Friday. Match play begins at 7 p.m.
The Irish will have little time to rest, as they return to court on Sunday against UIC. The Flames responded to a 0-7 loss to Northwestern in their season opener with 6-1 and 7-0 wins against Omaha and Grand Valley State. Led by sophomore Edit Cosmo, UIC is aiming to win back-to-back Missouri Valley Conference women’s tennis championships after winning its first ever last season. Matches start Feb. 8 at 1:30 p.m.
Men’s Tennis
It seems a two-week break left the Notre Dame men’s team with a lot of matches to make up. This weekend will give them plenty of opportunity to do just that as they host Wisconsin on Friday before a doubleheader against DePaul and Marquette on Sunday. The men’s team has started the season on a high note, edging out Yale 4-3 in the season opener before beating up Duquesne 6-1, Western Michigan 7-0 and Louisville 4-0. Rock-solid performances up and down both doubles and singles lineups have already put the Irish in a better spot than last season. They will look to test their mettle this month, before hitting a brutal ACC schedule in March.
The Irish are led by senior Sebastian Dominko, who has been a mainstay at both one-singles and one-doubles this season. The 2025 ACC Player of the Year possesses a powerful serve and baseline game and will be a key figure in the team’s success this weekend. A strong 2025 recruiting class has served Notre Dame admirably, with freshmen Nicholas Patrick and Nolan Balthazor putting up great results in both singles and doubles. The men’s team’s primary strength is its depth across the lineup and they will look to exploit that throughout the season.
Their Friday opponent, Wisconsin, is also off to a strong start this season. Wisconsin won an exhilarating 4-3 dual against SMU as its season opener, and after a 1-6 loss to No. 16 Baylor, rattled off four wins in a row to bring its record to 5-1. Similar to Notre Dame, Wisconsin boasts a deep lineup of seasoned players, so expect great tennis all across the board when the two square up. Match play begins Feb. 6 at 4 p.m.
A one-day break is all the Irish will get before their doubleheader on Sunday. They face off against DePaul at 10 a.m., then play Marquette at 5 p.m. All three of DePaul’s duals this year have been heartbreakers, including a 3-4 home opener to Cleveland State, a 3-4 loss to VCU and a 2-5 loss to ETSU. The Blue Demons will hope for a change of fortune on Sunday as they continue chasing their first win of the season. Marquette has also struggled to start this season and currently sits at 0-5. That includes a 0-4 loss to Wisconsin last weekend and a tough 3-4 loss to Montana State at home.
Notre Dame tennis is looking as strong as it has in a while, and this weekend promises some fantastic matches against good competition. Matches will be played Friday and Sunday at the Eck Tennis Pavilion.
