Redbirds Win Summit League Opener Against Drake, 5-2

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – After falling behind after doubles action, Illinois State (8-2) rallied to win five of six singles matches to pick up win over rival Drake (14-4) in the Summit League opener for both squads on Wednesday at the Evergreen Racquet Club in Bloomington. The Redbirds have now won four-straight matches in a row.

In doubles play, Drake took an early advantage by winning two of three matches to secure the double point. The win for the Redbirds came at the No. 1 spot, where the duo of Adrian Dibildox and Tomas Valencia continued their strong play of late with a 6-2 victory over Ulysse Verrando and Adan Tarquino.

Once things moved over to singles play, the Redbirds took over and picked up wins in five of six matches to run away with a 5-2 win. At the No. 1 spot Valencia defeated Christian Winstead by a score of 6-4, 6-2 and at the No. 2 position, Dibildox picked up a three-set win over Alan Gonzalez 5-7, 6-2, 7-5. Christian Capacci also picked up a win at the No. 3 spot over Sam Melaga by a final of 7-5, 6-4, and Tin Ostro rolled to a 6-1, 7-5 win over Jose Alessandro Hernandez at No. 4. Caden Scarlett rounded out a dominant effort in the singles matches with a 6-4, 7-6 victory over Arin Menon, as the Bulldogs won at No. 5 for their second point of the match.

ISU is back in action on Friday, April 3, on the road against defending Summit League Champion Denver, with first serve set for 11 a.m. Central time at the Denver Tennis Park. 

FINAL SCORE: Illinois State (5), Drake (2)

Doubles 
No. 1 Adrian Dibildox/Tomas Valencia (ILS) def. Ulysse Verrando/Adan Tarquino (DU) 6-2
No. 2 Alan Gonzalez/Ben Johnson (DU) def. Tin Ostro/Caden Scarlett (ILS) 6-3
No. 3 Alex Yeager/Arin Menon (DU) def. Christian Capacci/Manuel Pavia (ILS) 6-4

Singles 
No. 1 Tomas Valencia (ILS) def. Christian Winstead (DU) 6-4, 6-2
No. 2 Adrian Dibildox (ILS) def. Alan Gonzalez (DU) 5-7, 6-2, 7-5
No. 3 Christian Capacci (ILS) def. Sam Melaga (DU) 7-5, 6-4
No. 4 Tin Ostro (ILS) def. Jose Alessandro Hernandez (DU) 6-1, 7-5
No. 5 Ben Johnson (DU) def. Jett Leong (ILS) 7-5, 3-6, 10-5
No. 6 Caden Scarlett (ILS) def. Arin Menon (UIS) 6-4, 7-6 (0)

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