McLean County Times

After a three-month break, the Illinois State men's tennis team is set to begin the spring segment of its 2024-25 schedule. The Redbirds will host three matches over the weekend at Evergreen Racquet Club in Bloomington, Illinois.

The team will face Saint Joseph's University from the Atlantic-10 conference on Saturday, January 18 at 4:30 p.m. On Sunday, January 19, they will play a doubleheader against Marquette from the Big East and Eastern Illinois University from the Ohio Valley Conference at 12 p.m. and 5 p.m., respectively.

The Redbirds return six players from last year's squad. These include sophomore Tom Bevan from Wellington, New Zealand, and juniors Adrian Dibildox from Monterrey, Mexico; Tin Ostro from Zagreb, Croatia; Caden Scarlett from Evansville, Indiana; and Tomas Valencia from Santiago, Chile.

New additions to the team include East Florida Gulf Coast transfer Jett Leong from Melbourne, Australia. In the fall season, Leong primarily partnered with Bevan in No. 3 doubles. The team also welcomes international mid-season transfers Christian Capacci from Forlimpopoli, Italy; Finn Logue from Carlisle, England; and Manuel Pavia from Lana, Italy.

Head Coach Mark Klysner is entering his 11th season leading the Redbird men's tennis program. "I can't wait to get this weekend started," Klysner said. "The guys are fired up to start the spring season. We've got some new guys that just arrived so it's going to be a quick transition for them into the college game. I think all three opponents this weekend will be a tough test and a good measure of how we are looking early on."

Klysner is joined by former Redbird Melker Isaksson as part of his coaching staff for a second season. Isaksson was recognized with Summit League Academic All-League honors during his time as a student-athlete (2019-23) and was named Ticketsmarter Summit League Athlete of the Week as a senior.

Saint Joseph's University Hawks had an overall record of 7-17 last season and are led by sophomore Ernesto Ruy who achieved a singles record of 15-12 last year.

Marquette University's Golden Eagles recorded an overall record of 4-17 last season with freshman Cyrus Ahmad posting a singles record of 4-6 during fall.

Eastern Illinois University's Panthers ended their previous season with an overall record of 3-19 and are led by senior Zach White who held a singles record of 6-13 in 2024.

Following these matches over the weekend, Illinois State will host Ball State University on January 25 before traveling to South Bend to compete against Notre Dame on January 26 inside Eck Tennis Pavilion.

For updates on Illinois State men's tennis events and news follow GoRedbirds.com or connect via social media platforms "X" (RedbirdMTEN) and Instagram (redbirdmtennis).

GoRedbirds.com provides information about tickets for Illinois State events along with other resources like multimedia content and merchandise related to Redbird athletics.