Box Score BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – The Milwaukee women's tennis team completed day two at the Redbird Duals Sunday, playing well in doubles action against Eastern Illinois and Illinois State while also competing against SEMO in singles at Evergreen Racquet Club.
 
The doubles combinations turned in a strong day, going 4-2 overall including a perfect 3-0 sweep of Eastern Illinois.
 
"I thought today was very successful overall," head coach Ryan Kucera said. "We played fantastic doubles, a great turnaround from day one. Our positioning was much better, and in doubles positioning is everything. We are getting quicker and quicker to our spots, which puts us in a good position to play aggressively and attack the net. We also played with a lot of fire and that makes us a very intimidating group to play."
 
Iva Stejskalova and Alice Shields got things going at No. 1 against EIU, topping Elizaveta Bukraba-Ulanova and Christine Gouws, 6-4.
 
From there it kept getting better, with Nadiia Konieva and Giorgia Cavestro taking down Lauren Ellis and Brittany Steven, 6-3 at No. 2, followed by Anouk Ma-Ajong and Anika Tylek blitzing Claire Perez-Korinko and Emma Pilipovic-Kljajic by a final score of 6-1.
 
In the matchup against Illinois State, Konieva and Cavestro stayed hot, taking care of Elena Jankulovska and Nevena Kolarevic, 7-6 (3) at No. 3. In addition, Burgersdijk and Sara Simonova played well at No. 2, but fell, 6-7 (6).
 
"We still have areas where we need to improve, and if we can put away more of the chances we're creating at the net, we will find even more consistent success," Kucera said."
 
Singles play was a tougher task, seeing MKE unable to pull out any individual wins.
 
"In singles we gave a similarly positive effort to yesterday," Kucera said. "We are competing hard on every court and playing at a higher level each time out. I know the team was frustrated that their play didn't translate to more wins, but I'm proud of how we are showing up consistently and improving each week. The team has been diligent to learn from every experience and that is the mindset that will take us towards our goals. The next step for us is to continue working on being fearless and decisive when we earn attacking opportunities. We are looking forward to finishing the fall strong next weekend."
 
Doubles vs. Eastern Illinois

1. Iva Stejskalova/Alice Shields vs. Elizaveta Bukraba-Ulanova/Christine Gouws, 6-4
2. Nadiia Konieva/Giorgia Cavestro vs. Lauren Ellis/Brittany Steven, 6-3
3. Anouk Ma-Ajong/Anika Tylek vs. Claire Perez-Korinko/Emma Pilipovic-Kljajic, 6-1

 
Doubles vs. Illinois State

1. Iva Stejskalova/Alice Shields vs. Tijana Zlatanovic/Tara Damnjanovic, 2-6
2. Babette Burgersdijk/Sara Simonova vs. A. Abyasova/Silvia Pomarolli, 6-7 (6)
3. Nadiia Konieva/Giorgia Cavestro vs. Elena Jankulovska/Nevena Kolarevic, 7-6 (3)

 
Singles vs. SEMO

1. Babette Burgersdijk vs. Romana Tarajova, 3-6, 3-6
2. Nadiia Konieva vs. Daniela Hlacikova, 2-6, 4-6
3. Anika Tylek vs. Vivian Lai, 2-6, 4-6
4. Sara Simonova vs. Ksenia Shikanova, 2-6, 4-6
5. Anouk Ma-Ajong vs. Cosima Trinity Calinescu, 1-6, 1-6
6. Giorgia Cavestro vs. Teona Velkoska, 2-6, 0-6