March 17, 2016

By Joanne Norell

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The University of Notre Dame women’s tennis team will resume its Atlantic Coast Conference schedule on Friday when the Irish welcome Wake Forest to the Courtney Tennis Center.

WHAT: Match 15
WHO: No. 38 Notre Dame (9-5, 3-2 ACC) vs. No. 29 Wake Forest (12-4, 2-3 ACC)
WHEN: 3:30 p.m. ET, March 18
WHERE: Courtney Tennis Center (weather permitting) | Notre Dame, Ind.
FOLLOW: | Live Stream (indoors only)
TWITTER: @NDWomensTennis

Scouting Wake Forest
The Demon Deacons won nine straight matches to start the season, but have lost three of their last five heading into Friday’s match, including a two-match skid to North Carolina and Georgia Tech. Wake Forest is led by No. 50 Kimmy Guerin, who is 13-3 on the dual season, while Joanna Zalewski (13-3), Emma Davis (12-4) and Luisa Fernandez (11-3) also sport outstanding singles records. In doubles, Fernandez and Andrea Retolaza are 9-4, while Samantha Asch and Davis are 8-4 for the Demon Deacons. Notre Dame is 13-9 in the all-time series against Wake Forest.

Rankings Summary
The Irish rose two spots in the latest Orace/ITA team poll to No. 38 after a 7-0 win over LIU Brooklyn last week in Puerto Rico. In last week’s singles poll, senior Quinn Gleason dropped three spots in the rankings to No. 44 and is now 8-4 on the season. Additionally, junior Monica Robinson rose three spots to No. 53, boasting a 10-4 record at the No. 2 spot this sesaon. Gleason and Robinson fell to No. 40 in the doubles polls last week after losing three of their last four matches.

Rookie Cruising
Sophomore Brooke Broda is turning in a fantastic season thus far, posting a 10-0 record this season in dual matches. Indeed, Broda – who missed last season with a shoulder injury – has lost just one match all season dating to fall tournament play, boasting a 16-1 record overall.

Last Time Out
The Irish were scheduled to play two matches last Tuesday during their spring break trip to Puerto Rico, but rain halved Notre Dame’s plans. The Irish shut out LIU Brooklyn 7-0 on Friday to close out their trip, but could not reschedule their other slated match against East Carolina.

ITA Rules Changes
This season, the NCAA with the support of the ITA, will utilize a no-ad scoring format for the NCAA Division I men’s and women’s tennis championships. If a game reaches deuce, the next point will win the game. Additionally, eight-game pro-sets will no longer be utilized in doubles matches, with teams playing one set to six, with a tiebreak at six-all. At the individual doubles championships, matches will consist of the best-of-three sets, with a match tiebreak in lieu of a third set. The rules changes are designed to improve the pace of play in championship matches.

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To keep up with all things Irish women’s tennis, be sure to follow @NDWomensTennis on Twitter and like Notre Dame Women’s Tennis on Facebook.

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Joanne Norell, athletics communications assistant at the University of Notre Dame, has been part of the Fighting Irish athletics communications team since 2014 and coordinates communications efforts for the Notre Dame women’s soccer, men’s tennis, women’s tennis and fencing programs. Norell is a 2011 graduate of Purdue University and earned her master’s degree from Georgetown University in 2013.