PEORIA, Ill. - The largest team in Bradley Women's Tennis history will open the 2011-12 season this weekend by hosting Chicago State, Illinois State, Robert Morris (Chicago) and South Dakota in the Hotels at Grand Prairie Invitational at the Markin Tennis Courts.
The five-team, round-robin event will include 108 matches played in three doubles flights and six singles flights over the course of three days. Play will begin at 1 p.m. Friday with one round each of doubles and singles play. Action will continue at 9 a.m. Saturday with two rounds of doubles and singles play, then conclude Sunday at 9 a.m. with a final round of doubles and singles action. In the event of inclement weather, play will be moved to the Clubs at River City (8603 N. University Street) in north Peoria.
Bradley's roster includes an all-time high of 12 players and 11 Braves will be in action this weekend. Sophomores Adele Henke (Edina, Minn./Edina H.S.) and Sarah Rodefeld (Carmel, Ind./Carmel H.S.) both will play in the No. 1 singles flight and each will team with a freshman in the No. 1 doubles flight: Henke with Corey Mattson (Mequon, Wis./Homestead H.S.) and Rodefeld with Carly Miles (Greentown, Ind./Eastern H.S.).
Miles and fellow freshman Cassia Wojtalik (Indianapolis, Ind./Cathedral H.S.) both will play in the No. 2 singles flight. Wojtalik will team with another freshman, Elizabeth Przystawski (Prospect, Ky./Assumption H.S.), in the No. 2 Doubles flight and Bradley's second No. 2 doubles team will be made up by sophomores Meredith McDonagh (Bryan, Ohio/Bryan H.S.) and Ashley Roth (Birmingham, Mich./Seaholm H.S.).
Przystawski will be the lone Brave in the No. 3 singles flight, while both McDonagh and Mattson will compete at No. 4 singles. Roth will be joined by freshman Jessie Bertino (Lockport, Ill./Joliet Catholic H.S.) in the No. 5 singles flight, while the sister combination of junior Brigitte Graf (Double Oak, Texas/Faustina Academy) and freshman Monique Graf (Double Oak, Texas/Faustina Academy) will play in the No. 6 singles flight.
Bradley will utilize a number of different pairings at No. 3 doubles, including the Graf sister combination in the third round Saturday at 11 a.m., while also matching up with Illinois State's Ashton Nesbit throughout the weekend for a second doubles squad in the No. 3 flight.
The Bradley Athletics Communications staff will update results online at www.BradleyBraves.com throughout the weekend.
The Braves will continue their fall schedule with four more tournaments, beginning with the Gopher Invitational Sept. 16-18 at the University of Minnesota.
