MADISON, Wis. -- The No. 48 Wisconsin women's tennis team battled No. 6 Northwestern down to the wire before ultimately falling, 4-3, in a dual match on Sunday at Nielsen Tennis Stadium.
 
Prior to the match, the Badgers (8-7, 7-6 Big Ten) honored four seniors: Melissa Pick, Christina Zordani, Anna Makarova, and Murina Tudor.
 
Three Badgers won their singles matches, headlined by Xinyu Cai defeating No. 89 Maria Shusharina in straight sets on Court 1. It marked Cai's fourth win over a ranked opponent this season.
 
Ava Markham claimed the second singles victory for Wisconsin with her 6-4, 6-3 win at the second position. Antonela Stoica rounded out UW's winning effort by claiming both her tiebreaks to seal a singles win over No. 65 Clarissa Hand.
 
Up Next:
Wisconsin will compete in a pair of road matches starting with Penn State on Friday, April 2 followed by Ohio State on Sunday, April 4.
 
#6 Northwestern 4, #48 Wisconsin 3
 
Doubles competition
1. Julie Byrne/Briana Crowley (NUW) def. Xinyu Cai/Charmaine Seah (WIS) 6-4
2. Christina Hand/Clarissa Hand (NUW) def. Ava Markham/Anna Makarova (WIS) 6-0
3. Jordana Ossa/Antonela Stoica (WIS) def. Hannah McColgan/Caroline Pozo (NUW) 6-3
 
Singles competition
1. Xinyu Cai (WIS) def. Maria Shusharina (NUW) 6-4, 6-2
2. Ava Markham (WIS) def. Julie Byrne (NUW) 6-4, 6-3
3. Antonela Stoica (WIS) def. Clarissa Hand (NUW) 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-4)
4. Briana Crowley (NUW) def. Nastasya Semenovski (WIS) 6-3, 3-6, 6-2
5. Caroline Pozo (NUW) def. Anna Makarova (WIS) 6-4, 6-3
6. Christina Hand (NUW) def. Jordana Ossa (WIS) 6-0, 7-5
Match Notes:
 
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (1,6,5,2,4,3)