WHAT'S AHEAD
The Drake women's tennis team concludes a four-match homestand this weekend welcoming UTEP (1-2), Milwaukee (1-3) and North Dakota (1-3) to the Roger Knapp Tennis Center.  The Bulldogs (1-2) open competition versus the Miners on Friday (Feb. 8) at 6:00 p.m., before tilts against the Panthers and UND on Saturday (Feb. 9) at 12:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m., respectively.

A LOOK BACK
A furious comeback fell short for Drake as UMKC spoiled the Bulldogs' home opener with a 4-3 triumph last Saturday (Feb. 2) at the Roger Knapp Tennis Center.

The Kangaroos stole the early momentum in the affair registering victories at the Nos. 2 and 3 doubles positions to claim the doubles point.

Junior Klavdija Rebol (Kranj, Slovenia) evened the tilt at one following her 6-1, 6-4 singles triumph at No. 3.

UMKC regained the lead 3-1 after posting wins on the top two courts.

Freshman Jordan Eggleston (LaQuinta, Calif.) began Drake's comeback besting Amelie Amsallem on court No. 5, 7-5, 6-1.

Fellow freshman Maddie Johnson (Onalaska, Wis.) followed by knotting the showdown at three after a 6-4, 6-3 victory at No. 6.

All eyes then landed on court No. 4 where freshman Evy Van Genechten (Antwerp, Belgium) was battling Dimitra Stavrinakou.

Van Genechten took the initial set, 6-4, before Stavrinakou battled back to stave off the loss on the strength of a 7-5 decision in the second set.

The final frame came down to the tiebreaker where Stavrinakou withstood a furious charge from Van Genechten to complete a 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (6) victory.

IN OUR LAST ENCOUNTERS
UTEP 4, Drake 3 (March 21, 2008)

ORLANDO, Fla. - Drake was stung by a 4-3 setback as UTEP bettered the Bulldogs.

UTEP took control of the contest from the first serve and notched the deciding point on the No. 5 court.
Despite the outcome being decided, the Bulldogs pulled out a pair of three-set triumphs at the second and third singles slots to bring the final margin to 4-3.

After dropping the first set at the No. 2 position, 7-5, Irina Kalashnikova fought back to take the next two frames to come out with a 5-7, 6-1, 6-4 win.

Kari Sloboth capped off singles play with a 6-3, 3-6, 10-5 triumph at No. 3.

The tandem of Veronika Leszayova and Sarah Plowman accounted for Drake's other victory as the duo netted an 8-4 decision.

Drake 7, North Dakota 0 (Feb. 3, 2012)
DES MOINES, Iowa - Drake registered a 7-0 victory over North Dakota at the Roger Knapp Tennis Center.

The Bulldogs established momentum in the affair from the start sweeping all three doubles contests.

Drake continued its strong play in singles as victories by Gabriela Demos and Amanda Aragon at the Nos. 3 and 5 slots pushed the Bulldogs to within a point of victory.

Clinching the triumph at the No. 4 position was Nell Boyd (Arlington Heights, Ill.), who registered a 6-1, 6-1 decision.

Rounding out Drake's victory total at the Nos. 1, 2 and 6 holes was Manca Krizman, Klavdija Rebol and Ali Patterson (Overland Park, Kan.).

Drake 4, Milwaukee 3 (Feb. 11, 2012)
MILWAUKEE, Wis. - Rebounding after dropping the doubles point in its showdown with Milwaukee, Drake rallied to post a 4-3 victory over the Panthers.

The two sides split doubles decisions at the Nos. 1 and 2 positions before Milwaukee secured the deciding tally with an 8-3 triumph at No. 3 over Jessica Aguilera and Ali Patterson.

Drake had an opportunity to claim the doubles point, but the Panthers were able to score four unanswered points at the top position to force the winner-take-all match at No. 3.

Aguilera evened the affair at No. 3 getting Drake on the board with a 6-3, 6-1 victory.

Milwaukee promptly retook a 2-1 lead following Maddy Soule's 7-5, 6-3 win against Klavdija Rebol at the top position.

The Bulldogs answered by rolling off three-straight triumphs to secure the match.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Drake returns four letterwinners from a squad that posted a school record in wins with a 22-7 ledger last spring, including a second-place showing in the Missouri Valley Conference.  The Bulldogs picked up where they left off a year ago in the fall, registering a 102-76 combined singles/doubles record.

Jordan Eggleston and Maddie Johnson led Drake with 22-9 and 20-9 combined singles/doubles ledgers, respectively.  Eggleston registered a team-best 12 singles victories, while matching Klavdija Rebol with a team-high 10 doubles triumphs.

The Bulldogs also received combined double-digit victory totals from freshman Mariel Ante (Riverside, Calif.), Nell Boyd, Rebol, Evy Van Genechten, Ali Patterson and freshman Lea Kozulic (Varazdin, Croatia) with 17, 16, 14, 14, 13 and 12 wins, respectively.

DRAKE HEAD COACH PAUL THOMSON
Paul Thomson is in his third season leading the Drake women's tennis program after serving five years (2005-10) as head men's and women's coach at Brevard College in Brevard, N.C.

Thomson led the Bulldogs to a 13-10 mark during his inaugural campaign, including a 4-3 third-place finish in the Missouri Valley Conference and Drake's first winning record since 2006.

During his rookie season guiding the Bulldogs, he mentored then freshman Klavdija Rebol, who became Drake's initial first team All-MVC performer since 2005, garnering all-league accolades at the No. 3 singles position.  Manca Krizman was also honored for her play on the court, being named to the All-Select squad by the MVC coaches.

Off the court, Gabriela Demos was honored for the second-consecutive year as a first team MVC Scholar-Athlete selection.

In 2012, Thomson led the Bulldogs to a record-setting 22-7 ledger, en route to a 5-2 second-place finish in the MVC.  The 22 victories established a school record for wins and allowed Drake to surpass the 20-victory plateau for only the second time in school history.

The Bulldogs captured their initial postseason triumph since 2006 when Drake advanced to the State Farm MVC Championship semifinals with a 4-1 victory over Northern Iowa.

Five players earned 20 or more singles wins, sparked by Krizman, who posted a team-best 31-5 singles record, which included a 25-match winning streak. Every Bulldog registered a winning singles' record, while all but one Drake player matched the feat in doubles, led by 27 wins courtesy of Demos.

Pulling in MVC All-Select team honors were Krizman and Rebol, while Demos was named to the All-MVC Scholar Athlete first team for the third-consecutive campaign.  Collecting honorable mention All-MVC Scholar-Athlete accolades was Krizman.

Drake's senior class of Amanda Aragon, Jessica Aguilera, Demos, Krizman and Earlynn Lauer made its mark on the Bulldogs' program.  Demos finished first in school history (since 2006-07) in combined career victories (139), while ranking third in school history (since 1990-91) in career doubles wins (74).  Krizman is third in school history (since 2006-07) in combined career victories (126), while Aguilera is rated fourth (120).

UP NEXT
For the first time since the 2006 campaign, Drake renews acquaintances with in-state rival Iowa as the Bulldogs travel to face the Hawkeyes on Feb. 16.  Match time is slated for 11:00 a.m.