DeKALB, Ill. – The Northern Illinois University women's tennis team improved to 8-2 on the dual match season with wins over Valparaiso and Lewis Saturday at the Nelson Tennis Center at Chick Evans Field House.  The Huskies opened the day with a 4-0 win over the Beacons, then scored a 6-1 win versus Lewis.
 
"Today was a positive and productive day," said NIU head coach Eric Burns. "We fought extremely hard through two tough matches, and we were able to get everyone on the court for at least one match while picking up two more wins. We feel good about where we are at right now."
 
NIU started the Valparaiso match with 6-1 wins from the Huskies' No. 1 and No. 3 doubles teams as the duos of Maria Dzemeshkevich/Nataly Ninova and Reagan Welch/Jenna Horne gave NIU a quick 1-0 lead.  In singles, freshman Lucia Yecora improved to 6-0 on the year with a 6-1, 6-1 win over Brynn Steven at No. 4 singles. Junior Nataly Ninova followed with a 7-5, 6-2 win from the No. 3 spot and Maria Dzemeshkevich clinched the win and ended the match with a hard-fought 7-5, 7-6 (7-3) win at No. 1 singles.
 
"We got off to a great start in doubles and really played a complete match [versus Valparaiso]," Burns said. "Valpo is such a scrappy and well-coached team. They make you earn every point. We did a nice job of dictating play and attacking. The last four matches with them were 4-3 matches in favor of the road team so it was good to finally get one at home."
 
The Huskies split the only two doubles matches contested versus Lewis. Welch and Horne extended their unbeaten streak to open the season to seven matches (7-0) by defeating Sreevally Medishetti and Benedetta Luccone 8-6 in the tiebreaker at No. 2 doubles. A forfeit at No. 3 gave the Huskies the doubles point.
 
In singles, Dzemeshkevich and Welch each posted three-set wins from the No. 1 and No. 3 spots, respectively. Freshman Irmak Budak scored a 6-1, 6-1 victory at No. 2 and sophomore Sydney Paradise won 6-1, 6-2 in her 2025 singles debut.  
 
"We really had to battle in this match," Burns said. "Lewis came ready to play and played at a very high level. We were lucky to get the doubles and fought off five match points at No. 2 doubles to get the point. Credit to Lewis they played aggressively and really pushed us at times during the match, but we showed great resiliency to fight back and ultimately get the win."
 
NIU is now 5-0 on the season at home in the Nelson Tennis Center in 2025. The Huskies are in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, next Friday for a pair of matches as they will face South Dakota at 10 a.m. followed by Sioux Falls at 2 p.m.
 
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