OMAHA, Neb. – After dropping the first three Summit League matches of the season, the Western Illinois women's (4-8, 1-3) tennis team snapped the streak and defeated Omaha (4-14, 1-2) 4-3 on Saturday (March 30) afternoon.
"I am so happy for the girls that we finally got over one of these hurdles," said head coach Mirko Bjelica. "Today they showed a lot of heart and grit for staying the course and got rewarded for the constant improvement in their game."
The Leathernecks battled back after the Mavericks took the doubles point in dramatic fashion.
Megan Tagaloa evened the match on a 6-2, 6-3 win over Justine Linscott in the No. 6 spot. The Mavericks then defeated Mia Melnizki (No. 1) 6-2, 6-4 and Ana Bjelica (No. 2) 6-3, 6-4 to go up 3-1.
WIU followed the two straight defeats with three consecutive victories. Junior Laura Ballesteros won the battle over Savanna Crowell in the tiebreaker set 10-4. Fellow returner Mary Bjelica evened the match 3-3 after rallying back from a first set loss to win 6-4, 6-4. In the No. 4 flight, Freshman Anouk Maajong clinched the first League victory in dramatic style in 7-6, 10-4, and 7-5.
The Leathernecks are back in action next Sunday (April 7) to make up a match with Missouri. First serve is set for 4 p.m.
