Results
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Valerija Gercar came out on top Friday afternoon, clinching the No. 4 singles match which helped Illinois State mark-up another Missouri Valley Conference win this season against Northern Iowa, 4-3.
In doubles play, Illinois State dropped two matches to Northern Iowa. Marcia Tere-Apisah and partner Jelena Karla Vujicic battled hard against Jieke Stroobant and Astrid Santos but fell 6-4. Redbird duo Gabriela Sprague and Gercar went back and forth with Panthers, Gisela Kemper and Sydney Wolfe, but came up short, 7-6.
In singles competition, the Redbirds won four-out-of-five matches, earning enough points to win the overall match. Tere-Apisah won in two straight sets against Stroobant, 6-4, 6-4, while Vujicic also took down her opponent, Santos, in two sets, 6-4, 6-1. Gercar fought through two long sets and defeated Wolfe to take home the win and clinch the match for Illinois State. Freshman Andrea Beneroso beat opponent, Eve Small, defeating her in two sets, 6-2, 6-2. Sprague hustled through three sets but fell to Kemper, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1.
Illinois State is now 9-9 overall and 3-1 in MVC play.
The Redbirds have the night to rest and will take on Drake Saturday morning at 10 a.m. The match will be held Illinois State's outdoor courts, The Gregory Street Tennis Courts, located in Normal, Illinois. In the event of rain, the match will be relocated to The Bloomington Tennis Center in Bloomington, Illinois.
For live updates and more, follow Redbird Women's Tennis on Twitter: @RedbirdWTEN.
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