March 1, 2012
NORMAL, Ill. -
The Illinois State women's tennis team (3-5) heads into their first home match this spring against Eastern Illinois on Friday, opening play against the Panthers at 7:30 p.m.
Head coach Chris Hoover knows that this match will be an important one.
"The first home match of the season is always a good one," said Hoover. "We have a couple home matches coming up, so we're looking to start them off with a win against Eastern. There's always been a bit of a rivalry there because we're both state schools in Illinois, so we're hoping to beat them again this year."
The Redbirds head to the courts having remained undefeated against Eastern Illinois since 2007. The most recent two face-ups between the schools have resulted in 7-0 victories in favor of Illinois State. The Panthers are currently 2-5 overall in the spring season, heading to Normal on a three-match losing streak.
"We know what we need to do to win," Hoover states. "Doubles is our strongest area of play, and we've been winning that point recently. But its only one point. We need to win singles matches to get that win on the board."
Illinois State is returning to play after falling to UIC, 6-1, after being swept in singles play. The Redbirds won in flights one and three in doubles play. New pairings have continued to prove effective for ISU: new partners Aniko Kiss and Emmie Marx defeated their opponents, 8-5, and at No. 3, Hannah Esker and Stefanie Youngberg came out on top, 9-7.
"The match against Eastern is always a good one," said Hoover. "They have strong players, but we have never lost to them. This year won't be the first year we do."
Friday's match against Eastern will take place on the courts of the Evergreen Racquet Club.
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