Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Natasha Tomishima named MVC Tennis Athlete of the Week
03/20/2013 | 12:00:00 | Women's Tennis
March 20, 2013
By Tim McCaughan
SIUSalukis.com
ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- Southern Illinois women's tennis player Natasha Tomishima has been named the Missouri Valley Conference Tennis Athlete of the Week, marking the first Player of the Week honor of her career.
A sophomore from Campo Grande, Brazil, Tomishima went undefeated in singles and doubles last week to help the Salukis to a 3-0 record during their spring break trip to Florida.
At flight No. 2 singles, Tomishima defeated Rita Maisak of Florida International (6-1, 6-3) while besting Jacqueline Raynor (7-5, 6-2) of Quinnipiac. Against Florida Atlantic, Tomishima completed an improbable comeback after being down a set and trailing 1-5 in the second set to win the match (2-6, 7-5, 6-3) to capture her eighth straight singles win.
"Natasha did a great job persisting from 1-5 down in the second set to pull out her singles match," said head coach Audra Nothwehr. "You don't get to see that very often."
In doubles action, Tomishima won all three of her matches at the No. 2 doubles slot with partner Jennifer Dien. The duo dominated their FIU counterparts 8-3 and won in a tiebreaker against the Quinnipiac duo Michelle Dassa and Raynor 9-8 (2). Tomishima and Dien won their fourth straight match when they won 8-3 against a Florida Atlantic duo.
Players Mentioned
