NEWARK, N.J. —  The Rutgers women's tennis team (1-1, 0-0 B1G) heads to Newark, N.J., to take on NJIT (0-0) on Saturday, Jan. 27 (12 p.m.) at the Naimoli Family Athletic and Recreational Facility.
 
Last Time Out
 
Rutgers split its season-opening doubleheader with Princeton and Howard on Saturday, Jan. 20. The Scarlet Knights came up short against the Tigers, 4-3, before downing the Bison, 7-0.
 
"(The doubleheader) was a mental and physical test," head coach Hilary Ritchie said about the doubleheader. "I was pleased with how we came out against Princeton. They are a good team who plays fast. While the team was disappointed to come up short, we had three strong singles wins. Our team was focused and worked hard with a quick turnaround to beat Howard."
 
Recapping the 2023 Fall
 
The Scarlet Knights are coming off a successful fall schedule, where they posted a team record of 78-59 in singles and doubles competitions through seven total events.
 
Leading the way in singles play was Minchae Kim, who claimed 17 total victories, nine singles and eight doubles.
 
Mai Nguyen also had a strong showing, recording an 8-2 record in singles competitions. The sophomore finished the campaign on a five-match win streak which included two straight-set victories and three comeback wins.
 
In doubles, the pair of Nguyen and Amira Badawi won five matches together, the most out of RU's 18 different duos.
 
Recapping the 2023 Spring
 
RU finished its 2023 spring season with an 11-13 record. The campaign was highlighted by a 9-2 nonconference record, earning wins in the first four matches of the year.
 
Following a challenging conference slate that consisted of nine ranked opponents, Rutgers earned the No. 13 seed in the 14-team bracket in the 2023 Big Ten Women's Tennis Tournament.
 
The Scarlet Knights opened the tournament with a match against No. 12-seeded Michigan State, earning a 5-1 victory. The first round win marked the first Big Ten Tournament win for Ritchie since she was elevated to the position in 2016.
 
The team's spring campaign ended in the tournament with a 4-1 loss to No. 5-seeded Northwestern.
 
New Kids 'On The Banks'
 
RU welcomed two new additions to the squad this off season, graduate student Yana Gurevich and freshman Naomi Karki.
 
Gurevich spent four years at UC Davis before coming to join the Scarlet Knights. The Los Gatos, Calif. native announced her decision to finish her collegiate career 'On the Banks' in November 2022.
 
During her successful four-year career with her former team, Gurevich recorded a 44-30 singles record helping her to be named the Big West Player of the Week three times. She was also named to the All-Big West Conference Second Team Singles as a sophomore and junior.
 
Following a strong senior season where she finished with a 10-8 singles record playing exclusively at the top lineup spot, Gurevish was named to the All-Big West Conference First Team Singles and Doubles.
 
Karki began her Rutgers career after finding success at East Brunswick High School where she led her squad to the 2019 NJSIAA State Championship as well as GMC and Red Division titles.
 
As an individual, Karki recorded an impressive 24-2 during that season and was named the Heather O'Reilly Freshman of the Year as well as the GMC Fall Athlete of the Year by MyCentralJersey.com.
 
In 2021, Karki led her team to repeat as both GMC and Red Division champions. She also advanced to semifinals in doubles of G18 National Winter Championships.
Karki spent the 2022 summer training at the Juan Carlos Ferrero Academy in Villena, Spain.

Aye, Aye Captain(s)

Heading into the upcoming campaign, Ritchie has named Chloe Brown and Jackeline Lopez as the team's co-captains for the spring. Brown, a senior out of Johns Creek, Ga., will enter the season as captain for the second-straight year, while Lopez, a junior from Dunwoody, Ga., earned the distinction for the first time in her career.
 
Entering her fourth spring season with the Scarlet Knights, Brown has appeared in 39 total matches over the last three years. The senior competed in a career-high 18 matches in 2023, recording 10 total wins, six singles and four doubles. Following the campaign, Brown was named a 2023 ITA All-Academic Team Member and ITA Scholar Athlete.
 
Lopez has been a mainstay at the top of Rutgers' lineups throughout her first two seasons with the program. During the 2023 spring slate, the junior took the court in 23 matches, recording 16 wins, eight singles and eight doubles. All of her singles victories came at the No. 1 spot.

History Against NJIT

The Scarlet Knights hold a 4-1 advantage in the lifetime series against the Highlanders. Most recently, the teams matched up on Jan. 28, 2022, at East Brunswick Racquet Club with NJIT claiming its first victory over RU, 5-2.

Scouting the Highlanders

NJIT is coming off a 2023 season where it went 10-8 in dual competition, including a strong 6-1 in home matches. The Highlanders earned the No. 5 seed in the Southland Conference Tournament, ultimately falling to No. 4 Northwestern State in the quarterfinals, 4-0.

Sophomore Irene Cocero has provided strong play for the Highlanders since joining the team, earning a team-best 10 dual singles wins during the 2023 campaign. The  Alcala De Henares, Spain native also played to a record of 9-8 (8-6 at No. 1) in doubles competitions.

The Highlanders are set to open their 2024 dual season on Friday, Jan. 26 against Marist before facing the Scarlet Knights on Saturday.

Looking Ahead

The Scarlet Knights will return home to the East Brunswick Racquet Club to host Delaware on Friday, Feb. 2 (12 p.m.) and Yale on Saturday, Feb. 3 (5 p.m.).

Follow Along

Follow Rutgers women's tennis on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.