SIUE (10-2, 1-0 OVC) vs. Southeast Missouri (7-6, 2-0 OVC)
Date: Saturday, March 23, 2024
Time: 2 p.m., CT
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo.
Series: SEMO leads, 9-8
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Live Stats: SEMORedhawks.com
Redhawks host SIUE
The top two teams in the Ohio Valley Conference meet for a big match when Southeast Missouri (7-6, 2-0) hosts SIU Edwardsville (10-2, 1-0) Saturday. Start time is 2 p.m., CT at the John C. Bierk Tennis Complex.
Series History
Southeast Missouri currently holds a slight 9-8 edge in its all-time series against SIU Edwardsville. These teams last met in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Championship last spring where SEMO won by a score of 4-2. With that win, the Redhawks advanced to the NCAA Tournament. SEMO has not lost to the Cougars since 2017 and has a 6-2 record against SIUE under Head Coach Mary Beth Gunn.
Winning Ways
The Redhawks carry a four-match winning streak into its Ohio Valley Conference clash with SIU Edwardsville. Southeast Missouri beat Bradley, Arkansas State, Western Illinois and Lindenwood during that stretch. Lera Valeeva posted a 4-0 singles record and Trinity Calinescu and Vivian Lai went 4-0 in doubles action since the start of the winning streak. As a team, SEMO (10-0) has not lost in doubles and fashioned a 17-3 singles record over the last four weeks. The Redhawks are presently first in the OVC standings.
OVC Weekly Awards
Southeast Missouri continues to rack up the Ohio Valley Conference weekly honors. This week, Juliette Talieu won her second OVC Women's Tennis Player of the Week award. Talieu and Daniela Hlacikova claimed their third OVC Doubles Team accolade this week, as well. It marked the fourth time this spring where SEMO swept the weekly honors. In all, the Redhawks have won six OVC Player of the Week awards and four OVC Doubles Team laurels in 2024.
About SIUE
The Cougars are coming off a 7-0 win over Tennessee State in their first Ohio Valley Conference match of the spring. Overall, SIU Edwardsville is 10-2 with its only losses coming by one point against both Illinois State (4-3) and New Orleans (4-3). SIUE's No. 4 and No. 5 players Stefaniya Anikina and Amelia Gorman are a combined 11-1 in singles play. Anikina and Gorman boast the best doubles record of 9-1 at the No. 2 position.
Ohio Valley Conference Dominance
The Redhawks have dominated the Ohio Valley Conference as of late. Southeast Missouri has won the regular season OVC title twice, the OVC Tournament title twice, and made an NCAA appearance twice since 2021. Since the 2021 campaign, the Redhawks are 19-2 in regular season conference matches and 5-1 in OVC Tournament play. SEMO has not lost to a current OVC Conference member since 2018 (Eastern Illinois).
Redhawks Picked to Win OVC in 2024
The Redhawks are the Ohio Valley Conference preseason favorite entering the 2024 campaign. Southeast Missouri received 35 points and five first-place votes in the overall voting. SIU Edwardsville, Eastern Illinois, Tennessee State, first-year OVC member Western Illinois, Lindenwood and Southern Indiana completed the poll. Daniela Hlacikova (No. 1), Vivian Lai (No. 4), Trinity Calinescu (No. 7) and Juliette Talieu (No. 9) are ranked among the league's top 10 players ahead of the spring.
