SURPRISE, ARIZ. – Rutgers tennis opened Big Ten play with No. 42 Wisconsin on Tuesday afternoon at a neutral site in Arizona. Sophomore Daira Cardenas led the Scarlet Knights with a victory at No. 5 singles.
 

DOUBLES

At No. 1 doubles, senior Tess Fisher and Minchae Kim suffered just their second loss of the year, falling to UW's No. 43 ranked doubles pair of Xinyu Cai and Alina Mukhortova. The RU duo of senior Kristiana Zahare and freshman Jackeline Lopez were in a battle at the No. 2 spot, tied evenly at 3-3. The Badgers, however, edged out the win at No. 3 doubles to earn the team point.
 

SINGLES

Cardenas was triumphant at No. 5 singles, holding strong for a 7-5 win in the first set before cruising to a 6-1 win in the second to secure the victory. It marks her seventh singles win of the year, extending her streak to three straight wins at No. 5 singles.

At No. 2 singles, Lopez rallied from a 6-4 loss in the opening set to posting a 7-6 (9) in the second. In the decisive set, she fought until the end despite being edged 10-7.

Sophomore Alisa Prinyarux also pushed  her matchup at No. 6 singles to three sets. Although she started the matchup with a 7-5 win in the first, her UW opponent took the next 6-3. And, in the end, held the slim advantage of 10-8 in the final set. 
 

UP NEXT

Rutgers remains on the road to continue Big Ten play, visiting Maryland on Saturday, March 19.
 

FOLLOW THE SCARLET KNIGHTS

Follow Rutgers women's tennis on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Download the Scarlet Knights App for Apple or Android today.