April 5, 2007
NORMAL, Ill. -
The Illinois State women's tennis team will look to remain unbeaten in Missouri Valley Conference action and atop the league standings when they travel to face Evansville and Southern Illinois this weekend. The contest against the Purple Aces is slated to begin at 3 p.m. on Friday at the Carson Tennis Courts, while first serve versus the Salukis is set for 10 a.m. at SIU's University Courts on Easter Sunday.
The Redbirds (8-6, 3-0 MVC) have been red hot of late, winning their last four matches. Following a streak that saw ISU lose six of seven matches, the `Birds have stepped up their play and have regained the form needed to claim a fifth consecutive Valley crown.
"This is a huge weekend for us because we need to keep playing at a high level," head coach Chris Hoover said. "Everyone in our conference has gotten much better, including Evansville and Southern Illinois. Both teams are hungry to prove themselves against Valley competition and will be gunning for us.
"We need to play with the same confidence and focus that we had against Indiana State to be successful."
Leading the way for the Redbirds during their current win streak has been sophomore Tanja Hrovatic, as well as juniors Carolyne Parent and Véronique Parke-Bédard. Hrovatic has shaken off the rust that comes from sitting out a year and a half after transferring from New Orleans to win her last four singles matches. In ISU's last match against No. 66 Indiana State, the Ljubjana, Slovenia, native clinched the upset for the `Birds by winning a three-set thriller over Fadzai Masiyazi.
Parent, who leads the MVC with a 7-0 record when playing at the No. 4 spot in the lineup, has been the team's most consistent player all season. The St.-Jean Sur Richelieu, Québec, native is tops on the squad with 17 singles victories and has won 14 of her last 17 matches. Parke-Bédard ranks second on the team with 14 singles victories, including four straight, and teams with senior Katri Miller to form one of the best doubles tandems in the conference. The duo owns a 13-5 overall record and has won their first three Valley matches.
The Purple Aces boast a 15-3 overall record, but are 0-1 in the Valley after falling to Southern Illinois on March 30. Evansville is led by senior Brittany Brown and sophomore Lisa Kawamoto, who are 15-1 and 17-1 in singles competition, respectively. Brown also teams with Beth Peyton to form a doubles tandem that has tallied a 16-2 record this season.
Southern Illinois enters the weekend with a 9-4 overall record, 1-0 in the Valley. The Salukis own a five-match winning streak of their own and will face off against Bradley and Indiana State on Friday and Saturday leading up to the match up versus ISU.
The Redbirds return to the courts on Sat., April 14, for their final road contest of the season at 27th-ranked Wichita State. Match time is slated for 1 p.m. at the Shockers' Coleman Tennis Complex.
