NORMAL, Ill. – The Redbird's are returning to the Bloomington Tennis Center this weekend as they host the Redbird Invitational. The tournament consists of Illinois State, Toledo, Creighton and Southeast Missouri State in a cross-conference thriller.
The Redbirds are returning after spending the past two weekends on the road. The squad went 1-2 over that span, with a victory over Murray State and fell to Marquette and Lipscomb. Senior Jana Kustkova led the way in the No. 3 spot going 2-1 for the Redbirds. Senior Veronika Golanova and Sophomore Ivon Mihaleva went 1-1 over the span as well.
Southeast Missouri State is currently 2-3, including a win over MVC foe Missouri State. The Red Hawks are led by Junior Kseniya Zonova, who earned Second Team All-Conference in the OVC last season.
Toledo is 5-1 on its season and is on a three-game winning streak heading into this weekend. The Rockets also defeated Valparaiso, who the redbirds will play on Apr. 7. A key player for Toledo is Dee Dee Leenabanchong, who was selected Second Team All-Conference last season. The team was awarded the Jacoby Trophy for being the top women's athletic program in the Mid-American Conference last year, after the squad tied the program's record for wins at 16-7.
Creighton is 2-4 in their spring slate and is led by senior Ashley Ishimura, who earned Second Team All-Conference in the Big East last season.
Illinois State and Creighton will play first on Saturday, Feb. 23 at 10 a.m. with Toledo and SEMO following at 2 p.m. The winners of those two matches will play for the championship on Sunday, Feb. 24 at 12:30 p.m. and the other two will play for third place at 9 a.m. As always, admission to all tennis matches is free.
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