The Valparaiso University tennis team wrapped up a successful weekend at the Illinois State Redbird Invitational in Normal, Ill. with a flawless 4-0 record in singles action on Sunday in addition to winning two of the team’s three doubles matches. The standout day was highlighted by Demi Jhaveri (Westlake, Ohio / Westlake) obtaining the Flight 2 Singles crown by capping off her 3-0 weekend.

How It Happened

• Jhaveri prevailed in a pair of tight sets to top Bradley’s Kirstin Hailey 6-4, 7-5 for the Flight 2 Singles championship.
• In the Flight 2 Singles consolation draw final, Amanda Tabanera (Valencia, Calif. / Valencia) also battled her way to wins in a pair of tightly-contested sets, edging Bradley’s Madalena Andrade 7-5, 6-4.
• In Flight 3 Singles, a pair of Valpo players came away victorious on Sunday. Mia Bertino (Lockport, Ill. / Joliet Catholic) bested Bradley’s Maria Bezmenova in the third-place match. The three-set thriller saw Bertino prevail 6-2, 3-6, 7-5.
• Valpo’s other victory in the Flight 3 Singles Draw came in a more one-sided manner. Freshman Elizabeth Sobieski (Muskego, Wis. / Muskego) dispatched Bradley’s Juliana Martinez 6-2, 6-0.
• Moira Silva (Houston, Texas / Houston Tennis Academy) and Olivia Czerwonka did (Kenosha, Wis. / Saint Joseph Catholic Academy) not play their title match in Flight 1 Singles since they were slated to match up with one another. Instead the teammates shared the Flight 1 Singles crown after a successful weekend for both players.
• In addition to the Sunday singles success, Valpo won two of its three doubles matches on the final day of competition. Czerwonka and Silva garnered an 8-5 victory over an Eastern Illinois pair, while the Tabanera/Bertino tandem beat another Eastern Illinois duo 8-2.

Inside the Matches

• Tabanera’s win came over Andrade, who was the 2021 Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Player of the Year while playing for Alabama State.
• Czerwonka’s doubles win was the 52^nd of her career, moving her into a tie for sixth in program history. She drew even with Kate Kollarova (2002-2002) and Whitney Chada (2003-2007) on Sunday.
• The Tabanera triumph was the 42^nd of her singles career, two away from moving into the top 10 in the program record book.
• Thanks to a 3-0 weekend in singles, Jhaveri now owns 36 singles successes in her collegiate career. Bertino won two singles matches this weekend to advance her career accumulation to 26.

Up Next

The first Missouri Valley Conference championship event of the 2022-2023 athletics calendar is on tap as the Beacons will join their conference mates for the MVC Individual Championships in Springfield, Mo. this coming weekend, Oct. 7-9.