NORMAL, Ill. – The Drake women's tennis team captured a come-from-behind 4-1 triumph past Evansville on Friday (April 25) to advance to the semifinals of the Missouri Valley Conference Championship for the third consecutive year.
The Bulldogs move on to face Southern Illinois, who earlier this season dealt Drake a 4-3 setback in Carbondale, Ill., in a 2:00 p.m. semifinal tilt on Saturday (April 26).
“I was really pleased with our doubles play today,” Drake head coach Sadhaf Pervez commented. “We lost the point but had chances to win it and this being the first time we have used this line-up is great. The girls handled their business today by really working hard for every single point. It was huge for Lea (Kozulic) to clinch the match for us as she lost to the same girl in a tough three-set battle earlier this year, so that makes the win even sweeter. I'm so excited to play Southern Illinois tomorrow as they beat us last time and are No. 2 seed, so there is no pressure on us. We can't wait for the battle.”
For the second time this season the Bulldogs dropped the doubles point to the Purple Aces. Evansville earned a pair of 8-6 decisions at the Nos. 1 and 2 positions to earn the tally and assume a 1-0 lead.
Sophomore Maddie Johnson (Onalaska, Wis.) opened singles for Drake registering her team-leading 31st victory of the season, 6-1, 6-2, over Marina Moreno on the No. 3 court, to even the tilt at one.
Sophomore Jordan Eggleston (LaQuinta, Calif.) gave the Bulldogs the lead for good dispatching Andjela Brguljan at No. 5, 6-2, 6-0.
Junior Nell Boyd (Arlington Heights, Ill.) extended Drake's advantage to 3-1 besting Kelsey Costales at the No. 4 spot, 6-3, 6-1.
Collecting the match-clinching tally at No. 6 with a 6-4, 6-1 victory past Mina Milovic was sophomore Lea Kozulic (Varazdin, Croatia). Kozulic's win avenged a three-set setback against Milovic in the regular season on April 5.
DRAKE (15-5) DEF. EVANSVILLE (8-13), 4-1
SINGLES:
No. 1 Marketa Trousilova (EVAN) leading Klavdija Rebol (DU), 7-6 (7), 1-0 unfinished
No. 2 Mariel Ante (DU) leading Natasha James (EVAN), 7-6 (5), 1-0 unfinished
No. 3 Maddie Johnson (DU) def. Marina Moreno (EVAN), 6-1, 6-2
No. 4 Nell Boyd (DU) def. Kelsey Costales (EVAN), 6-3, 6-1
No. 5 Jordan Eggleston (DU) def. Andjela Brguljan (EVAN), 6-2, 6-0
No. 6 Lea Kozulic (DU) def. Mina Milovic (EVAN), 6-4, 6-1
Order of finish: 3,5,4,6
DOUBLES:
No. 1 Costales/James (EVAN) def. Kozulic/Rebol (DU), 8-6
No. 2 Moreno/Trousilova (EVAN) def. Boyd/Johnson (DU), 8-6
No. 3 Ante/Eggleston (DU) def. Brguljan/Molivic (EVAN), 8-1
Order of finish: 3,2,1
