April 23, 2010
WICHITA, Kan. -
The Illinois State women's tennis team collected four Missouri Valley Conference awards Thursday night, in Wichita, Kan., including the women's Coach of the Year honor awarded to head coach Chris Hoover. Sophomore Hannah Esker received two of the three awards.
"I am happy for Hannah, Aniko and Carmen," said Hoover. "I'm a little bummed for the others who were not awarded because I thought they had strong cases for their positions. I was also a little surprised to receive coach of the year award. We had a great year and the team was recognized for the season. It's always nice to be recognized by your peers."
Esker sports a 22-6 record on the year, including a perfect 7-0 conference mark at the No. 6 singles position. In addition to being named to the scholar-athlete team for the first time in her career, this Effingham, Ill., native also received her first-all conference selection Thursday night. She has a 17-3 record in the spring and has gone undefeated in her last thirteen matches, seven of which have been in conference play.
"Hannah is well deserved and she went undefeated in her position," Hoover said. "In doubles, she and Carmen only lost one doubles match in conference play, which is rewarding. She is a very worthy recipient of all of the awards she receives and the kind of kid who would give anything for a conference win."
Sophomore Aniko Kiss was named the 2010 MVC all-select team. Kiss plays at the No. 1 singles position for the Redbirds and posts a 14-16 record on the year. In the spring, Kiss holds a 10-11 record and is 4-6 in the Valley.
Esker earned her second award of the night in doubles. Esker and Carmen Peters earned all-conference honors at the No. 3 doubles position with a 17-4 record overall and 15-4 record in dual play. At one point during the spring season, the duo was riding on a nine-match winning streak until it was snapped in a match against Illinois-Chicago. The Redbird pair is 6-1 in conference play.
"It's windy and a little rainy here," Hoover said. "So we are going to have to keep bringing the best we have to the court."
Illinois State is geared up for this weekend's MVC Championships and enters the tournament as the No. 2 seed in the conference. Their first match is today, April 23, beginning at 10 a.m., against Creighton in the quarterfinals.
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