GRAND FORKS, N.D. – The University of North Dakota women's tennis team traveled to the Chicago area for a trio of matches against Chicago State, Bradley, and Northern Illinois over the weekend. The Fighting Hawks battled, but fell to the Cougars and Braves before rallying for a 4-3 triumph over the Huskies to end the trip.
 
Chicago State 6, North Dakota 1
Working through travel delays due to blizzards across the entire Midwest, UND's match at Chicago State had to be moved from original starting time of mid-afternoon on Friday to 6 p.m., but the Fighting Hawks were able to arrive in the Windy City for their opening match against the Cougars.
 
North Dakota claimed a pair of victories on the No. 3 doubles court and the top position in singles play, but the Cougars were able to control the match for the 6-1 triumph.
 
The duo of Isa Sullivan and Masha Lobanova picked up a 6-4 win doubles play for the Fighting Hawks before Kaede Adamo won, 6-3, 6-1, on the top court. Sullivan pushed her match to three sets at the No. 2 position, but fell 7-6 in the tiebreaking frame.
 
Bradley 4, North Dakota 3
Looking to rebound after a tough loss, UND battled against a Bradley team that had already collected four wins on the season in five tries; however, the Fighting Hawks fell, 4-3, to the Braves.
 
BU jumped out to the early lead in doubles play, claiming the top two courts for the early 1-0 lead. The pair of Lobanova and Sullivan were holding a 5-4 lead in the third position when the point was clinched for the Braves.
 
UND quickly evened the match at one when Alex Revenig rolled to a 6-0, 6-1 triumph on the No. 6 court. Zahra Finnigan pushed the Hawks in front, 2-1, when her opponent was forced to retire in the first set after Finnigan had built a 5-2 cushion from the fourth position.
 
Bradley answered with three straight wins, including a wild three-set victory on the No. 2 court, to complete the comeback and claim the match. Allie Ochotorena won the final point of the match for UND, rallying after dropping the opening set, 6-4, for back-to-back victories, 7-5, 6-2, at the No. 5 court.
 
North Dakota 4, Northern Illinois 3
Playing its third match in less than 72 hours, North Dakota ended its weekend on a high note with a 4-3 triumph over Northern Illinois on Sunday morning in Rockford.
 
After dropping the doubles points in the previous two matches over the trip, the Fighting Hawks cruised to the early 1-0 lead with victories on all three courts. Amano and Lobanova claimed a 6-2 triumph on the top court before the pairing of Ochotorena and Finnigan clinched the point with a 6-3 win from the No. 3 position. UND put an exclamation point on partner play as Sullivan and Preethi Kasilingham rallied for a 7-6 win on the second court to sweep doubles play.
 
Sullivan kept the momentum rolling for the Hawks on the top court in singles play, picking up a 6-4, 6-1 win to put the visitors up by two, but NIU answered with a victory from the No. 2 position to get on the board.
 
On the No. 4 court, Kasilingham dominated her opponent for a 6-1, 6-0 victory, but again the Huskies responded with a strong win from the third position to cut the UND lead to 3-2 with just two courts remaining.
 
NIU tied the match at three with a win on the sixth court, but Ochotorena held off her opponent with a 6-1, 7-5 triumph at the No. 5 position to clinch the match for the Fighting Hawks.
 
North Dakota returns to action on Saturday morning with a home contest vs. Gustavus Adolphus from Choice Health and Fitness.