UIC will hit the road to take on in-state rival Illinois State Saturday afternoon. It is the only match in a 27-day span, and will give the Flames a chance to hit the courts with, perhaps, a new lineup.
"Doubles is definitely something we will look to improve before our next match,"
Hans Neufeld said after his squad dropped a 5-2 decision to North Dakota. UIC has won just two of 16 doubles sets since January. They have yet to win the doubles point against a dual match foe, after a successful fall tournament slate that saw the team rack up wins at the WMU Invite and ITA Regionals.
The Flames have been off since Super Bowl Sunday, and will not play again until Leap Day.
Last Time Out
- Though the Flames lost to North Dakota two weeks ago, they were just two tiebreakers away from winning the match.
- The doubles point turned on a 7-6 (4) set at #3.
- Johan Hedstrom's #1 singles match went UND's way after a 7-6 (5) third set.
- Pelle Strandberg and Kasper Parlklo each won their singles match.
Flames to Watch
- Strandberg has a team-best 5-1 singles record. After starting the season in the #5 flight, he has played at #3 the last two matches.
- Parlklo is 3-2 in singles play, all at #2.
- The Flames have split their last 18 singles matches, 9-9.
Scouting the Opposition
- Illinois State is 7-5 this season after a comeback win over Ball State on Sunday.
- Pol Botifull Ruis, Diego Le Gal Perez, and freshmen Nam Pham and Melker Isaacson, all won singles matches against the Cardinals.
- The teams have a bit of familiarity, having played in two tournaments together last fall. Illinois State won all five singles matchups, but UIC prevailed in two doubles sets.
