Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Young team? No problem.
04/28/2016 | 12:00:00 | Women's Tennis
By Drew Hoffman
SIUSalukis.com
WICHITA, Kan. - The Southern Illinois women's tennis team completed its conference schedule with a 6-1 record, finishing in second place behind Wichita State. The team's only loss came against the Shockers, the oldest team in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Salukis, on the other hand, are the youngest in the Valley, but that hasn't stopped them from making noise in conference.
"The fact that we don't have any seniors already gives us the opportunity to step up," SIU junior Polina Dozortseva said. "We knew from the fall that we could be good. We are a really deep team, all the way down to our No. 6 player. We knew we could make a statement against other teams."
SIU's active roster consists of three juniors, four sophomores, and three freshman. Despite not having any seniors on their team, the Salukis pay no attention to their ages. In the words of junior Meagan Monaghan, the team is just one big family, regardless of age.
"We all have our roles. Polina is like the mom; I'm like the big sister," Monaghan said. "We are young and we might do the wrong thing on the court sometimes, but we're a family and we help each other through everything."
The family of Salukis was able to post a 71 percent winning percentage in singles play against MVC opponents this season, which was the second highest in the conference. The team was led by three players that all finished with only one loss during the conference schedule. Dozortseva, junior transfer Ana Sofia Cordero, and freshman Katie Fries all had 6-1 records, for a combined 18-3 record between the three of them. The dominant play of the trio has led the team to relax, and gives them confidence in their singles play.
"A lot of things that have happened on our team have brought us together," SIU freshman Katie Fries said. "I think that our mutual dislike for other teams fuels us and pumps us up. We play very well in competitive atmospheres, and when we bring that energy we are a tough team to beat."
The team will play its first match of the Missouri Valley Conference Team Championships on Friday at 4:30 p.m. at the Coleman Tennis Complex against the University of Northern Iowa.
Players Mentioned
