Oct. 23, 2002

Illinois' women's tennis team will compete at the Omni Hotels/ITA Midwest Regional Championships Oct. 24-29 at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Mich. Qualifying rounds for singles and doubles begin Thursday, Oct. 24, with the doubles main draw beginning Friday the 25th and main draw singles action starting Saturday the 26th. Singles and doubles competition will run through Tuesday Oct. 29th.

Senior Eldina Fazlic joins a trio of juniors, Tiffany Eklov, Eva Choe and Jennifer McGaffigan in the singles main draw. Senior Michelle Webb, sophomore Leila Cehajic and freshman Brianna Knue will each look to secure one of eight spots in the main draw by advancing through the qualifying round. McGaffigan, who is currently No. 40 in the country, finished last season as the second-ranked player in the Midwest region.

In doubles, three teams will represent the Orange and Blue in the main draw. McGaffigan and Webb, who advanced to the Flight A title match at the William and Mary Invitational, will team up; they are 3-1 on the year. Choe joins with Cehajic for the event while Fazlic will compete with Knue. Choe and Cehajic are 3-0, while Knue and Fazlic are 2-1.

"This is the best fall we've had in my five years," said Head Coach Sujay Lama. "I'm very, very pleased with the entire team. The preparation up to this point has been solid, and I have a good feeling we'll do well this weekend."

Lama continued, "Regionals are where we're looking to peak as a team. A good showing here should give us confidence and momentum to going into the dual-match season."

Complete tournament results can be found at www.msuspartans.ocsn.com while the Illini team results can be followed on www.fightingillini.com.