Jan. 19, 2012
NORMAL, Ill. -
The Illinois State women's tennis team looks for redemption on Saturday, January 21, as it begins its spring season on the road against in-state rival Illinois. ISU head coach Chris Hoover leads the team, which returns junior Ariane Maack to its lineup of starters for the season opener.
Maack, who finished her sophomore season with an overall singles record of 14-11, and 15-17 in doubles, returns to the courts after being sidelined for all of 2011, missing both of the spring and fall seasons with a shoulder injury. Hoover hopes that her return will push her fellow student-athletes to compete at a high level Saturday.
"We're all really thrilled she will be back," said Hoover. "We know it will be a rough first match for her, but she wants to go all out and play again, so I'm excited she'll get her wish."
The Redbirds and Illini most recently matched up last April, when the Illini defeated the Redbirds, 7-0. Senior Hannah Esker hopes to lead the team, after posting close losses in both singles and doubles previously against Illinois. Esker lost in three sets to Leigh Finnegan, 6-7 (8-10), 6-4, 1-0 (10-3), and along with her now-graduated partner, Sarah Streitz, fell to Misia Kedzierski and Annie McCarthy, 8-5.
Aniko Kiss, the fellow senior on the team, also spearheads the efforts against the Illini. Kiss posts a 9-1 singles record after finishing third in the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Individual Championships in October. Kiss, along with sophomore Phyllis Tigges, hold an overall record of 5-2 in doubles play.
"Hannah, Aniko and Ariane are expected to continue leading the team," said Hoover. "They play important roles. Illinois is always a really good team to compete against, so we're expecting it to be a good first match and a good start to the spring season."
Play is set to begin at 4 p.m. in the Atkins Tennis Center in Champaign, Ill.
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