McLean County Times

The Illinois State women's tennis team concluded their 2024 regular season with a victory over Missouri State, finishing with a score of 5-2. The match took place on Sunday at the Gregory Street Courts in Normal, Illinois. This win marked the sixth consecutive victory for the Redbirds, bringing their overall record to 16-6 and their conference record to 7-1.

Head coach Maja Kovacek expressed satisfaction with her team's performance: "I'm really happy with how we handled ourselves today," she said. She noted that Missouri State challenged them throughout the match but praised her players' motivation, particularly in giving seniors Tijana Zlatanovic and Othilia Brodin a fitting sendoff on Senior Day.

The Redbirds secured an early lead by winning all three doubles matches. The No. 1 pair of Lana Caculovic and Tijana Zlatanovic defeated Cristina Flaquer and Nicole Ross 6-2. Nevena Kolarevic and Silvia Pomarolli also triumphed at No. 2 doubles against Tuana Gunal and Juliette Robinson with the same scoreline. Zoe Limparis and Nuria Sanz completed the sweep by defeating Mary Houston and Sandra Lukacova 6-3 at No. 3 doubles.

In singles play, Caculovic extended the lead to 2-0 with a decisive win over Houston at No. 2 singles, followed by Kolarevic's victory over Gunal at No. 3 singles, making it 3-0 for Illinois State. Missouri State managed to secure a point at No. 5 singles before Pomarolli clinched the match for Illinois State by defeating Robinson at No. 4 singles, bringing the score to 4-1.

Zlatanovic closed out the day with a win over Flaquer at No. 1 singles after three sets, finalizing the match score at 5-2 in favor of Illinois State.

With this victory, Illinois State earned the second seed for the upcoming MVC Championship set to begin on April 26 in Nashville, Tennessee. They will receive a bye on Friday and face either UIC or Missouri State in Saturday's semifinal match.