University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
Bradley
Panther tennis visits Bradley, Illinois State in weekend doubleheader
3/23/2023 11:18:00 AM | Women's Tennis
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa — UNI tennis returns to Illinois this weekend as the Panthers open Missouri Valley Conference road competition this Saturday at Bradley, and on Sunday at Illinois State.
The Panthers will face off with the Braves beginning at 1 p.m. CT on Saturday at Peoria's David Markin Tennis Courts, before meeting the Redbirds on Sunday morning at 11:30 a.m. at the Gregory Street Tennis Courts in Normal.
UNI looks to snap a pair of skids to their conference opponents, seeking their first win against Bradley since 2015, and Illinois State since 2018. The Panthers fell to both the Braves and Redbirds at home last spring by identical 5-2 scores.
UNI heads to Illinois after falling to a well-round UIC team last Sunday in Waterloo in a 6-1 loss. Andrijana Brkic picked up the lone win for the purple and gold at the No. 2 singles spot in a three-set battle with the Flames' Tamara Malazonia. Kim Zizek and Thaissa Moreira were also locked in three-set matches, but would both come up short.
The Panthers have shown improved doubles play throughout the season with the pairing of Darta Dalecka and Lorena Cardoso leading UNI with a 10-13 record this year, and 5-8 mark as the No. 1 duo. Brkic and Zizek have posted a 5-3 record together in the No. 2 doubles pairing, while Moreira and Issa Sullivan are 4-3 at the No. 3 spot.
In singles, Brkic has posted a breakout season for UNI, becoming the first Panther to win 20+ singles matches in a season since Gisela Kemper in 2014-15. With a season win percentage of .814 through 27 matches this year, Brkic currently holds the fifth best single-season win percentage in program history. Brkic is currently riding a 5-match winning streak.
Players Mentioned
