Women's Tennis Closes Out Summit League Play At Home

The Leathernecks play host to South Dakota State and Denver this weekend while honoring seniors Nicole Jones and Jenna Wallace on Sunday (April 23).

MACOMB, Ill. - The Western Illinois women's tennis team closes out Summit League play by playing host to South Dakota State and Denver over the weekend. The Leathernecks are trying to secure a spot in the Summit League women's tennis championships.

WESTERN ILLINOIS LINEUP (Based on previous match):
Singles:
No. 1. Courtney Lubbers
No. 2. Natalia Bravo
No. 3. Anna Daniel Fuentes
No. 4. Laura Ballesteros
No. 5. Jenna Wallace
No. 6. Cary Milanes
Doubles:
No.1. Lubbers/Wallace
No. 2. Bravo/Ballesteros
No. 3. Fuentes/Milanes.

LAST TIME OUT:
The Leathernecks dropped a close match on Saturday (April 15) on the road at Oral Roberts 4-3. Courtney Lubbers and Jenna Wallace dominated in the No. 1 doubles match against Ceijenia Corneluis and Andrea Vasiljevic of Oral Roberts. The duo won 6-3 but their victory did not carry over into the No. 2 doubles spot when Jovana Antonijevic and Petya Simeonova shut out the combo of Laura Ballesteros and Natalia Bravo 6-0. Western secured the doubles point behind a 7-5 victory from Anna Daniel Fuentes and Cary Milanes over the pair of Brenda Mercado Jove and Ximena Puentes. Natalia Bravo kept up her stellar play by winning to final two sets to defeat Vasiljevic 4-6, 6-0, 6-2. At the No. 3 spot, Fuentes also lost the first set 6-4 but recovered to beat Antonijevic 6-3, 6-3 in the final two sets to put Western in control of the match. The Golden Eagles went on to take the final three singles matches to escape with a 4-3 win. Western was denied three straight victories and fell to 8-13 overall, 2-2 in the Summit League.

HEAD COACH MIRKO BJELICA ON THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS WEEKEND'S MATCHES:
"The South Dakota State University match is must win for us if we any chance of making the conference tournament," said head coach Mirko Bjelica. "The Denver match will be our greatest challenge of the season due to the fact that they have beaten teams like Arizona just a couple of weeks ago. We do not plan on surrendering before the game. We are a team that is constantly improving and as long as that is the case, you never know what can happen. We are definitely looking forward to it."

SENIOR DAY:
On Sunday (April 23), Nicole Jones and Jenna Wallace will be honored for their contributions to Western Illinois women's tennis.

HEAD COACH MIRKO BJELICA ON SENIORS NICOLE JONES AND JENNA WALLACE:
"Our seniors have been with us through thick and thin," head coach Mirko Bejelica said. "We will surely miss them and their experience on and off court. Jenna's willingness to fulfill her roles and duties with emotion on the court will be long remembered. Nicole's quiet and competent attitude and her willingness to stick with whatever role she is assigned will be missed by myself and everyone on the team. We are losing two valuable team members but we are also very excited for them and the future opportunities they will have."

SCOUTING SOUTH DAKOTA STATE:
The Jackrabbits are 2-17 overall and winless in Summit League play at 0-4. South Dakota State comes to Macomb after playing at IUPUI on Friday (April 21). Senior Jasmin Rosa leads the Jackrabbits at the No. 1 singles spot. South Dakota State is coached by Joey J. Barnes and has not won a match since March 9, 2017.

SCOUTING DENVER:
The Pioneers are ranked No. 45 in the nation in the Oracle/ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings. Bianca Mok is the reigning Summit League player of the week. Denver is undefeated in Summit League play at 4-0 and has won every conference match by a score of 7-0. The Pioneers roll into Macomb after facing Oral Roberts in Denver on Friday, April 21. Denver is 14-6 overall and is on a six match winning streak. Christian Thompson is in her fourth season as the head coach of the Pioneers.

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Players Mentioned

Nicole Jones: Senior

Courtney Lubbers: Junior

Jenna Wallace: Senior

Natalia Bravo: 5' 6"; Freshman; Colegio Bilingue Buckingham

Anna Daniel Fuentes: Freshman; La Salle Tarragona

Cary Milanes: Junior; Miami Palmetto

Laura Ballesteros: Freshman; Castellar Del Valles

Players Mentioned

Nicole Jones
: Senior

Courtney Lubbers
: Junior

Jenna Wallace
: Senior

Natalia Bravo
: 5' 6"; Freshman; Colegio Bilingue Buckingham

Anna Daniel Fuentes
: Freshman; La Salle Tarragona

Cary Milanes
: Junior; Miami Palmetto

Laura Ballesteros
: Freshman; Castellar Del Valles