NORMAL, Ill. – After two close home losses this past weekend, the Illinois State men's tennis team will head to Murfreesboro, Tennessee, to compete in the Middle Tennessee Shootout, March 27-29.
Ranked as the tournament's No. 5 seed, Illinois State will start the tournament by playing the host school, No. 4 seeded Middle Tennessee, Friday at 2 p.m.
"This shootout is going to be good for us to get a few more matches in before conference play, and we will be facing some nationally ranked programs," said head coach Mark Klysner. "We will be playing a little shorthanded as four of our usual starters won't be playing, so some of our other guys will get a lot of matches, which is a good thing."
The Redbirds (6-9, 0-1) have dropped their last two matches, both 4-3 losses to MAC foes Ball State and Northern Illinois. If ISU is to get back on track during this weekend's action, it will continue to rely on freshman Christoffer Greve. Greve is tied for the team lead with eight singles wins and is currently riding a five-match winning streak, including two straight-set victories last weekend against Ball State's Collin Rigney and Northern Illinois' Carlos Manzanas.
Illinois State will also look to junior Rolando Torrellas, who has been playing just as well as Greve, recording four-straight singles wins and matching the freshman with eight total singles victories.
Despite injuries to key team members, like redshirt senior Muddappa Appanervanda, Klysner expects his squad to step up and battle like they have all season.
"We will just keep working and try to come out of the weekend with a positive feeling and hopefully no more injuries," said Klysner.
Following the weekend competition in Tennessee, the Redbirds will head back home for a conference matchup against in-state rival Southern Illinois, Saturday, April 4. That match is set to begin at 11 a.m. on the Gregory Street Tennis Courts in Normal, Illinois.
GoRedbirds.com:Â Your online source for Illinois State Athletics, tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.ÂÂÂÂ
