Michigan State women’s tennis ended the weekend with a split homestand at the MSU Indoor Tennis Center, defeating Rutgers 4-1 on Saturday before falling 4-1 to No. 44 Maryland on Sunday.
The Spartans opened strong against Rutgers, securing the doubles point with wins from the duos of sophomore Ellie Blackford and senior Matilde Morais, as well as junior Oriana Parkins-Godwin and senior Issey Purser. That early edge set the tone for singles, where Michigan State controlled key matches at the top of the lineup.
“Obviously, getting the doubles point is important,” head coach Kim Bruno said. “But at the end of the day, you still have six points up for grabs in singles, so you’ve got to keep that same focus and energy going into those matches.”
At court 1, Amara Brahmbhatt played with confidence and control. After taking the first set 6-2 behind strong serving and aggressive point construction, she stayed composed in a tighter second set, closing it out 7-5. Ellie Blackford followed with a dominant performance, winning 6-3, 6-1, using her consistency in long rallies to dictate play. Both showed why they hold the No. 1 and No. 2 spots for the team.
The clinching point came from junior Hanna Tsitavets, who delivered a comeback after dropping the first set 1-6. She responded with a commanding 6-2 second set and held her nerve in the decider, winning 6-4 to seal the match.
While Rutgers picked up a win at No. 3 and two matches went unfinished, Michigan State’s ability to execute in key moments proved decisive in the 4-1 victory.
The momentum, however, did not carry into Sunday.
The Spartans struggled with consistency, against a higher-ranked Maryland team, particularly in serve and pressure situations. After dropping the doubles point, Michigan State found itself chasing the match early.
Blackford remained a bright spot, earning a 6-2, 6-4 win at No. 2 with steady, composed play. Brahmbhatt also showed resilience at No. 1, bouncing back from a first-set loss to take the second 6-2 before her match went unfinished.
“Just sticking with our games and, overcoming like the big moments,” Bruno said. “Today, I think, you know, Maryland’s kind of got the best of that on us, so, you know, kudos to them. I don't think we played super poorly. I think we could have been a little cleaner in some spots, but that’s kind of how the chips fell for us today.”
Maryland capitalized on errors across the rest of the lineup, taking straight-set wins at courts 3, 4 and 5 to secure the 4-1 result. First, senior Nina Plihal fell 6-3, 6-3 at court 5, while Matilde Morais battled in a 6-2, 6-3 loss at court 3. Finally, Hanna Tsitavets rounded out the Spartan results at No. 4, dropping a 6-4, 6-1 decision in a match that went completely out of her control.
She emphasized that unforced errors made it difficult for the Spartans to stay in control.
“I mean, honestly, there was just too many errors,” Bruno said. “We were kind of giving them that, allowing them to beat us. If we’re going to get beat, we’re going to get beat — but you’ve got to make small balls and stick with the game plan. Just little things like that. It takes two good sets of tennis, and if you drop the first, you always have to take the second. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get that done in a couple spots today.”
Serving consistency was another major factor.
“Yeah, just serving it — probably first-serve percentages,” Bruno said. “They were so low for us today, especially in battles, and that hurts us because right away, you’re on the defensive. If you’re not getting your serves in, you’re not starting the point the way you want. Across the board, that’s something teams struggle with, but we’ve just got to bring that up. It doesn’t even have to be a massive serve — just spin it in and start the point.”
Despite the loss, Bruno highlighted the team’s growth as the season progresses.
“I think if you compare where we started the season to now, we’re a much better team,” Bruno said. “They’re playing their best tennis at the right time, and they’ve done a good job of sticking with the process of getting better instead of getting wrapped up in results. That’s the mindset we want going into next year for the girls coming back.”
Michigan State now sits at 11-11 on the season, showing both its potential in Saturday’s win and the areas it needs to clean up following Sunday’s loss as they get close their last match of the season.
