MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee women's tennis team finished off an unbeaten weekend after taking care of Eastern Illinois, 5-2, Sunday afternoon at River Glen Elite.
 
The MKE Panthers (4-4) started the day with the doubles point against the EIU Panthers (3-4) and then took four of six victories in singles play, several in convincing fashion.
 
Nadiia Konieva and Giorgia Cavestro started things off with a dominant 6-1 victory at No. 3 doubles, topping Jemma Booth and Lauren Ellis. The second match went Eastern's way so the No. 1 court was left to decide the team point.
 
Babette Burgersdijk and Sara Simonova then finished off the action with a 6-3 decision to give Milwaukee the 1-0 advantage.
 
"Today was a fantastic effort from our team," head coach Ryan Kucera said. "Mentally we were extremely strong. In the doubles point, our finishing at the net has improved tremendously, and it paid off today. Giorgia and Nadiia set the tone with a clinically aggressive performance on court three."
 
In singles, Alice Shields and Nadiia Konieva claimed convincing wins in straight sets, with Shields earning a 6-1, 6-1 win at No. 5 and Konieva a 6-3, 6-1 final scoreline.
 
Iva Stejskalova then guaranteed Kucera his first dual victory against an NCAA Division I opponent this season, defeating Jemma Booth 6-4, 6-3, at No. 3.
 
"In singles, we came out with great focus," Kucera said. "It's easy when you win the doubles point to let your guard down, but nobody did that. We had strong performances across the board today, but Iva's match really stood out. She was incredibly focused, played with great energy, and played with great commitment to impose herself and her aggressive game. It was huge for her to get the clinch for us. Really proud of everyone's effort, both on the court and with our energy to fight as one. A great weekend to build from."
 
The visitors then picked up the decision at No. 6 but Milwaukee responded with a gritty victory at No. 2 courtesy of Anika Tylek. After dropping the first set 6-2, Tylek bounced back with authority in taking a 6-1 game to even things at 1-1. She followed that with a 6-4 result in the third set to get MKE to five points on the day.
 
The final match to finish was a back-and-forth battle at No. 1, with Burgersdijk dropping the 6-7, 6-3, 10-7 decision.
 
Up next, the Panthers hit the road for a challenging trip, making stops at Omaha Saturday (4 p.m. start) and Creighton Sunday (9:30 a.m. start).
 
Milwaukee Panthers 5, Eastern Illinois 2
 
Singles competition
1. Christine Gouws (EIU) def. Babette Burgersdijk (MKE) 6-7, 6-3, 10-7
2. Anika Tylek (MKE) def. E. Bukraba-Ulanova (EIU) 2-6, 6-1, 6-4
3. Iva Stejskalova (MKE) def. Jemma Booth (EIU) 6-4, 6-3
4. Nadiia Konieva (MKE) def. Madeline Monroy (EIU) 6-3, 6-1
5. Alice Shields (MKE) def. Brittany Steven (EIU) 6-1, 6-1
6. Lauren Ellis (EIU) def. Anouk Ma-Ajong (MKE) 6-3, 7-6 (7-3)
 
Doubles competition
1. Babette Burgersdijk/Sara Simonova (MKE) def. Christine Gouws/E. Bukraba-Ulanova (EIU) 6-3
2. Brittany Steven/Madeline Monroy (EIU) def. Alice Shields/Iva Stejskalova (MKE) 6-3
3. Nadiia Konieva/Giorgia Cavestro (MKE) def. Jemma Booth/Lauren Ellis (EIU) 6-1