April 18, 2008
NORMAL, lll. -
The Illinois State men's tennis team seeks to snap a four-match skid as it concludes its 2008 regular season by traveling to Terre Haute, Ind., to face Indiana State on Saturday, April 19, before heading to Carbondale, Ill., to take on Southern Illinois on Sunday, April, 20. The Saturday match is scheduled for an 11:00 a.m. first serve while the Sunday match has a 10:00 a.m. start.
"We are looking to get back on the winning track," said head coach Cris James. "I felt that last weekend we made progress, even though we didn't get the results we wanted last weekend. We have gone back to fundamentals in practice the last couple weeks in practice, and I'm hoping that it pays off with wins."
Dating back through the 1993-94 spring season, Illinois State has gone 12-2 in the regular season versus Southern Illinois while winning the last eight meetings. The Redbirds have been less successful when facing Indiana State over the same time period, going 2-12. However, the `Birds enter Saturday's match against the Sycamores with a two-match winning streak against the Missouri Valley foe.
Illinois State (9-8, 2-2 MVC) senior Luka Marinkovic has the opportunity to move into a second-place tie for doubles wins in Illinois State men's tennis history. With a career mark of 79-28 (.738), Marinkovic sits just two doubles wins shy of Mike Miller's (1994-98) second-place total of 81. Marinkovic has played with junior Daniel Tobar the last two matches and the tandem has a five-match winning streak together. In singles, the Redbirds have struggled as of late, going four matches without a singles victory.
"Luka has been a rock for us all year," said James. "I don't think individual accomplishments are on his radar, because he is more focused on team success, but it is certainly something nice for him to have."
"We will probably have a new doubles line-up against Indiana State and Southern Illinois," said James. "Luka and Daniel are our best doubles team and individually they are our best doubles players, but I will probably split them up to give us a better shot at winning the doubles point."
Indiana State (8-12, 2-2 MVC) enters Saturday's match coming off a 6-1 defeat to MVC leader Drake. The Sycamores will be counting on Anton Tsymbalov. The senior currently leads Indiana State with a 14-6 mark in singles while playing at the No. 1 position. In doubles, Tsymbalov and junior Michael Wenham have compiled a team leading 7-4 record while playing No. 2 and No. 3.
Southern Illinois (8-12, 1-3 MVC) will host Illinois State on Sunday after facing Bradley on Saturday. Last weekend, Southern Illinois broke a five-match losing streak and notched their first Valley win in a 6-1 victory over Creighton. In singles, the Salukis are paced by junior Hugo Vidal and freshman Sebastian Rubiano who both have totaled 10 victories this spring. Sophomore Lucus Waked is only one off the pace with nine wins while playing at the No. 1 singles position. In doubles, Waked and sophomore Anton Leonenko have a team leading 7-8 record while at the No. 1 doubles position.
