CLEVELAND, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University tennis team is set to compete at the Viking Invitational Friday-Sunday, Oct. 20-22, in Cleveland, Ohio, as the Eagles will face players from the host Cleveland State University Vikings along with the Duquesne University Dukes and Youngstown State University Penguins. The ‘hidden dual’ event will see the Eagles take on each of the three schools in singles matches over the course of three days while also competing in four doubles matches Friday-Saturday at the Medical Mutual Tennis Pavilion on the CSU campus. Play gets underway each day at 10 a.m. with singles play before doubles action takes the courts at 1:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday.
FIRST SERVES
» The Eagles recently competed at the 2023 ITA Midwest Regional Championships, Oct. 12-13, in East Lansing, Mich., with five Eagles playing singles and four playing doubles against tough competition. Three of EMU’s five singles entrants advanced to the main draw as the team combined to win four singles and two doubles matches.
» Through two events this fall, both Linda Eloundou and Ksyusha Saenko have posted 5-1 records. Saenko was 3-0 and Eloundou 2-0 at the Redbird Invitational, Sept. 29-Oct. 1, before going 2-1 at the ITA Midwest Regional Championships.
» EMU captured four victories in the ITA Midwest Regional Championships qualifying draw with Linda Eloundou and Ksyusha Saenko each winning twice to earn berths in the main draw.
» The Eagles are led by Ryan Kucera, who is in his first year as the team’s head coach after being hired Aug. 9. He is joined by first-year assistant coach Maria Potsi.
» Ryan Kucera is featured on the most recent Eastern Insider Podcast (season 6, episode 8) with Kucera chatting with Tom Helmer about his start in the sport and taking over the EMU program.
» Eastern features a roster of nine student-athletes with eight returning from last year. Saenko is the lone newcomer to the program in 2023-24.
KUCERA FEATURED ON THE EASTERN INSIDER
Head Coach Ryan Kucera was featured on the Oct. 16 Eastern Insider Podcast (season 6, episode 8). Kucera sat down and talked with Tom Helmer about how he discovered the sport by hitting a ball against a concrete wall to now taking the reins of the EMU tennis program. To listen to the Eastern Insider, visit EMUEagles.com or on your favorite podcast app. Click here to listen to the episode.
DETAILS: VIKING INVITATIONAL
The Viking Invitational will feature four schools competing in singles and doubles over three days inside Medical Mutual Tennis Pavilion, including EMU, Duquesne, Youngstown State, and host Cleveland State. Each team will compete in one round of singles and two rounds of doubles play Friday and Saturday before finishing with one round of singles action Sunday. The event will crown a singles and doubles champion based upon a points system and where individuals are playing in the lineup. Action gets underway all three mornings at 10 a.m.
HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG
No live results or video will be available for the Viking Invitational. A full recap and all results will be made available on EMUEagles.com Sunday following the conclusion of the competition.
FAMILIAR FOES
Although the Viking Invitational will see the Eagles face three foes in ‘hidden duals’ that will not count toward team dual records, Eastern is set to take on three foes it has faced in the past:
» Cleveland State: EMU is 3-2 all-time against the Vikings in dual competitions and 2-2 in the last four seasons. The two teams met in Ypsilanti, Jan. 19, 2023, with the Vikings taking a 4-3 decision.
» Duquesne: The Eagles hold a 2-1 advantage over the Dukes, but lost the last meeting, 5-2, Jan. 28, 2017. EMU and DU players have not met one another this season in tournament play.
» Youngstown State: Eastern holds a 5-2 advantage in dual matches over the Penguins, including a 5-2 win last year, Feb. 18, 2023, in Ypsilanti. The two teams have had one encounter already this year with Andrea Quiroz falling to Julia Marko, 7-6 (5), 6-2, in the opening round of the ITA Midwest Regional Championships, Oct. 12, in East Lansing, Mich.
FAMILIAR FACE
Cleveland State is led by Head Coach Frank Polito, who played for, coached, and graduated from Eastern Michigan. Polito was a four-year letter winner and team captain for the then Hurons before earning his degree in telecommunications from EMU in 1990. He then took over as the men’s head coach in Ypsilanti from 1990-95 before coaching stops at Sienna Heights, Kansas, Akron, Louisiana-Monroe, Georgia, and Ohio State prior to CSU.
LAST TIME OUT: 2023 ITA MIDWEST REGIONAL
The Eastern Michigan University tennis team competed in the 2023 ITA Midwest Regional Championships Oct. 12-13, as the Eagles were one of 26 teams represented at the event hosted by Michigan State University in East Lansing, Mich. Five members of the team competed in singles play while two pairs of players took part in the doubles draw.
» Eastern opened action with four individuals in the qualifying draw with the quartet posting a 4-2 record on the day with Linda Eloundou and Ksyusha Saenko both winning two matches to reach the main draw. The four wins in singles qualifying are the most since EMU won four in 2016.
›› Sabina Brichackova joined Eloundou and Saenko in the main draw with all three falling in tough first-round matches.
›› The main draw loss for Saenko marked her first collegiate loss in singles play as she stands 5-1 on the year. She went 3-0 at the Redbird Invitational to open the season before adding two more wins in the qualifying round of the ITA event.
›› Eastern entered two doubles teams with both posting 1-1 records. Andrea Quiroz and Saenko paired up while Brichackova and Prerna Vichare teamed together with both squads winning their first matches before calling in the second round.
ON THE HORIZON
Eastern will next compete in its final fall event of the season when the Eagles head across the state to Kalamazoo, Mich., for the Bronco Super Challenge, hosted by Western Michigan University, Nov. 10-12. The event will be held at the West Hills Athletic Club each day.
FOLLOW US
For all things EMU Tennis, be sure to check out the team’s social media accounts, including EMUEaglesTennis on X and EMU_Tennis on Instagram.