DES MOINES, Iowa – Drake University women's tennis team earned its third straight sweep as the Bulldogs routed Southern Illinois 7-0 on Saturday at the Roger Knapp Tennis Center.
The Bulldogs improve to 18-4 and 4-0 in MVC play, while SIU falls to 13-8 and 2-2 in conference action.
The Bulldogs had a slow start as they fell behind early in all three doubles matches. Mariel Ante (Riverside, Calif.) and Adrienne Jensen (Iowa City, Iowa) at No. 1 and Nell Boyd (Arlington Heights, Ill.) and Maddie Johnson (Onalaska, Wis.) at No 2. both rebounded from the sluggish start to win 8-4, giving Drake a 1-0 lead.
"I have been preaching to the girls all year that we need to stay composed when teams are playing their best tennis. That's exactly what we did today,” said Drake head coach Sadhaf Pervez.
The Bulldogs didn't have their normal No. 1 singles player in the lineup, forcing everyone to move up one spot from their normal position. The shift in the lineup didn't faze the Bulldogs one bit as they swept all six singles matches.
“Today we showed just how much we have separated ourselves from last year. We have eight players on this team that can win at any spot in our lineup,” noted Pervez about today's singles lineup.
Junior Jordan Eggleston (LaQuinta, Calif.) thumped SIU's Vitoria Bierao, 6-0, 6-1 at No. 5 to give Drake a 2-0 advantage. Freshman Summer Brills (North Oaks, Minn.) cruised to a 6-2, 6-1 victory at No. 2, while Jensen posted a 6-3, 6-3 victory at No. 4 to give Drake its fourth and decisive point. Johnson took the first set in a 7-3 tiebreaker before closing out the match with a 6-2 second set win at No. 1. Boyd at No. 3 and Lea Kozulic (Varazdin, Croatia) at No. 6 both came back to win in three sets to complete the sweep.
“This program has grown so quickly and I give all the credit to these young ladies and how hard they have worked to get here,” said Pervez.
The Bulldogs have little time to celebrate as they host Evansville on Sunday at 10 a.m.
Drake 7, Southern Illinois 0
Apr 11, 2015 at Des Moines, Iowa (Roger Knapp Tennis Center)
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Singles
1. Johnson, Maddie (DU) def. Natasha Tomishima (SIU) 7-6 (7-3), 6-2
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2. Brills, Summer (DU) def. Meagan Monaghan (SIU) 6-2, 6-1
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3. Boyd, Nell (DU) def. Athena Chrysanthou (SIU) 0-6, 7-5, 10-6
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4. Jensen, Adrienne (DU) def. Yana Golovkina (SIU) 6-3, 6-3
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5. Eggleston, Jordan (DU) def. Vitoria Beirao (SIU) 6-0, 6-1
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6. Kozulic, Lea (DU) def. Ariadna Cairo Baza (SIU) 2-5, 6-2, 6-4
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Match Notes
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (5,2,4,1,3,6)
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