Illinois plays in Texas, Oklahoma
Illinois’ Emilee Duong returns the ball during the match against Rutgers at Atkins Tennis Center on March 29, 2019. At the ITA Championship in Tulsa, Oklahoma this weekend, Duong won her section of the Gold singles bracket.
October 9, 2019
This weekend, the Illinois women’s tennis team played in two different tournaments, six players went to play in the Baylor Invitational in Waco, Texas, and three went to the ITA Championship in Tulsa, Oklahoma, which yielded mixed results for the Illini.
Sophomore Shivani Ingle, freshman Emily Casati and senior Madeleine Gandawidjaja played in the “Green” singles draw in Waco, Texas. Ingle won three matches and made it to the final but ended up losing to Texas’ Ndindi Ndunda. Casati won two matches but lost to Ingle. Gandawidjaja also won two matches until losing to Addy Guevara from Texas Christian University.
Junior Emilee Duong, freshman Ashley Yeah and freshman Josie Frazier played in the “Gold” singles draw. Duong and Yeah both won in their brackets of the main draw. Frazier earned two wins in the singles consultation draw.
In doubles, the partners were: Gandawidjaja and Ingle, Duong and Frazier and Casati and Yea. All three lost their first match. Assistant coach German Dalmargro said the team played well.
“We won some really good matches; lost some really close ones,” Dalmagro said.
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There were a few constraints the team faced this weekend, the biggest one was the weather.
“It was in the 90s pretty much every day, so that was one (of the constraints),” Dalmagro said.
One of the things the team needs to work on is closing the match.
“We lost some matches based on not being able to close out opportunities, and the [the other team] comes from behind and then they beat us,” Dalmagro said. “We come on the short end of closing those opportunities. I don’t know if we get a little bit nervous or if the pressure just gets to us.”
Even with the intense heat and failure to close out some matches, Dalmagro was proud of the team.
“I’m super proud of the team for their attitudes throughout this entire weekend,” Dalmagro said. “It was a long weekend, long hours on the court – 10 to 11 hours a day. I’m super proud of their efforts.”
Sasha Belaya, Mia Rabinowitz, and Asuka Kawai all went to the ITA Championships as well.
In singles, Rabinowitz lost in the second round to Marie Mattel from University of Central Florida. Belaya made it to the third round but ended up losing to Maria Linares from Kansas State. In doubles, Rabinowitz and Kawai lost in the first round.
Asuka will start her round in singles on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. The team plays again on Oct. 16 through Oct. 22 at the ITA Midwest regional in East Lansing, Michigan.
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