NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State women's tennis team hosted their end of season meeting, naming Natalia Bravo, Jana Kustkova, Laura Fitzgerald and Ivon Mihaleva as special award winners.
The Redbirds concluded this season as MVC Champions after finishing the conference slate with a perfect 5-0 record, and made their first NCAA Tournament appearance for the first time since 2005. This spring was also the first time Illinois State women's tennis finished the dual season with 20 or more wins since 2010.
The squad was led by the duo of Kustkova and Fitzgerald who finished as the winningest doubles team, completing the dual season with an 11-1, 5-0 MVC record at the No. 2 slot. The senior-sophomore tandem received the MVP Doubles award. Additionally, Fitzgerald was awarded the "Match Ball", which is given to the athlete with the best performance at each individual match throughout the season. Fitzgerald collected the most match balls throughout the year, deeming her with the "Match Ball" award.
"Jana and Laura had an incredible result playing the No.2 position. They had such great chemistry on the court, and it's been fun watching them play," said Coach Kovacek. "Laura has been so consistent in her performances in singles as well, and really took her game to a new level this year."
Junior transfer Natalia Bravo collected two team awards, being deemed as the Hardest Worker and Most Improved player. The No. 3 singles competitor finished the spring season with a 13-5 overall and was perfect in Valley play, finishing 5-0.
"I'm really proud of Natalia. She struggled to find her game in the fall, but she continued to work hard and believed in the process, bringing great energy to every practice, Coach Kovacek said. "She finished the year playing her best tennis when we needed her the most and it's a testament to how much passion she has for this sport and the team."
Sophomore Ivon Mihaleva, completed the dual slate with a team best 15-5 overall record, and was chosen as the Singles MVP, playing primarily at No. 6. The Sofia, Bulgaria, native partnered with Bravo for No. 3 doubles and together they finished 7-3, 3-1 MVC.
"A big part of our success has been having the depth in our lineup and Ivon's record really shows that," Kovacek said. "She had a tough time this fall with injury and illness keeping her from competing, so for her to earn that many wins in the spring is a great accomplishment."
GoRedbirds.com: Your online source for Illinois State Athletics, tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
