Big screen, big serve

Iowa tennis recruit Jessica Matthews was featured in the upcoming Amazon Prime TV series “15-Love.”

Matt McGowan Sports Reporter

Playing on the big stage has become almost routine for Iowa women’s tennis recruit Jessica Matthews.

Not only has Matthews represented her country in international tournaments, but she also performed in front of the camera during the filming of the upcoming Amazon Prime TV series “15-Love.”

Matthews signed a national letter of intent on Dec. 19, 2022, to play tennis for Iowa. Before her commitment to the Hawkeyes, the Hertfordshire, England, native competed in the main draw of the 2022 Wimbledon Junior Grand Slam, playing on the same grass courts as the professionals at the All-England Club.

No.

It’s widely known that regular season dual meets mean virtually nothing in college wrestling anymore. Iowa grapplers have said from the beginning of the season that they’re preparing for what’s most important — the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments in March.

Well, it’s about that time, and Iowa has only put its highest-ranking starting lineup on the mat once this season in a 34-6 victory against No. 10 Nebraska on Jan. 20. Because of the lingering injuries and inconsistency throughout Iowa’s lineup this season, the Hawkeyes will not leave Tulsa, Oklahoma, on March 18 hoisting the first-place trophy. Iowa 174-pounder Nelson Brands missed the first four dual meets due to collarbone surgery and has been in-andout of the lineup since his return. Brands showed he can compete with the best, as he narrowly fell to Penn State’s top-ranked two-time NCAA champion Carter Starocci,

2-1, on Jan. 27.

Hawkeye Abe Assad hasn’t seen the mat since getting pinned by Wisconsin’s unranked Tyler Dow on Jan. 22. Despite the loss, Assad is Iowa’s best bet for a podium finish at 184 pounds.

Iowa’s 197-pounder Jacob Warner has had some tough losses lately, including a 2-0 loss to Penn State’s reigning national champion Max Dean and a buzzer-beating defeat to Minnesota’s unranked Michael Foy. Warner also missed two Big Ten dual meets. Warner showed his potential with a runner-up finish at the NCAA’s last season, and he started this season more

“When I was young, I would be so excited just when it’s that time of year just to watch [Wimbledon] on TV,” Matthews said. “And then some of the times I got some tickets to watch in person. It was just such a memorable experience. I remember every time I went … actually playing it was completely mind-blowing.”

Matthews earned a bronze medal in the World School Championships for Team England in Italy in June 2019. In May 2022, Matthews won the junior doubles International Tennis Federation title in Wrexham, Great Britain.

“It’s just amazing, especially when it’s playing the country which the tournament’s in,” Matthews said. “Everyone’s supporting you, everybody’s wearing the flag, and they’ve got face paint of the flag. Just the support in general is amazing. I mean, for football players it’s amazing, but for British players especially, it’s just another whole atmosphere.”

Matthews has also assumed leadership roles during her playing career, including captain of her girls’ tennis school and the Independent Schools Tennis Association.

“I’m quite good at looking at how people respond to certain situations and then acting on it,” Matthews said. “So, I had some people