BLOOMINGTON, Ill. –  A re-energized Illinois State took the courts Wednesday for a midweek non-conference match with Saint Louis and rolled to a 7-0 win over the Billikens at the Evergreen Racquet Club.
"This was a great win for us today. More so to prove to ourselves that we are playing at a high level, especially after a break from our matches in Las Vegas," ISU head coach Mark Klysner said. "The guys came out fired up, stayed focused and all the matches went our way. Tomorrow, we will start conference play and I expect it to be like any conference match where emotions are high, and we will just have to carry this momentum into it."
The Redbirds took the early lead by winning the doubles point, as the No. 1 tandem of Arvid Hjalte and Zane Kohrs rolled to a 6-0 win and the No.2 team of Diego Le Gal Perez and Melker Isaksson picked up a 6-3 win to give ISU the early advantage.
ISU picked up its second point of the match, when Saint Louis' Eliott Ekindi withdrew from his match with Le Gal Perez up 5-0 in the first set. A win by Diego Emilio Moura Herrera at No. 5 in straight sets 6-1, 6-0 made the score 3-0 in favor of ISU before Pol Botifoll Rius rolled to a 6-2, 6-3 win at No. 2 to clinch the match for the Redbirds. Gritty wins by Nam Pham at No. 1 and Hjalte at No. 6 in three sets kept the momentum going and Isaksson's win at No. 3 completed the sweep for the 'Birds.
ISU is back in action tomorrow at the Evergreen Racquet Club for its Summit League opener against Omaha, with first serve set for Noon CT.
FINAL SCORE: Illinois State (7), Saint Louis (0)
Singles:Â
1. Nam Pham (ISU) def. Oscar Alvarez (SLU) 6-2, 7-5
2. Pol Botifoll Rius (ISU) def. Ryota Fukushima (SLU) 6-2, 6-3
3. Melker Isaksson (ISU) def. Theo Ortis (SLU) 7-5, 6-2
4. Diego Le Gal Perez (ISU) def. Eliott Ekindi (SLU) 5-0, retired
5. Diego Emilio Moura Herrera (ISU) def. Adam Behun (SLU) 6-1, 6-0
6. Arvid Hjalte (ISU) def. Pavel Badaiants (SLU) 2-6, 6-2, 10-6
Doubles:
1. Arvid Hjalte/Zane Kohrs (ISU) def. Oscar Alvarez/Adam Behun (SLU) 6-0
2. Diego Le Gal Perez/Melker Isaksson (ISU) def. Theo Ortis/Ryota Fukushima (SLU) 6-3
3. Eliott Ekindi/Jonathan Sadowski (SLU) def. Nam Pham/Ming-Chieh Chiu (ISU) 7-6 (7-4)
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