YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) — The Eastern Michigan University tennis team will play host to a pair of Mid-American Conference foes at the Chippewa Club in Ypsilanti this week as the Eagles will welcome Western Michigan University and Miami University to town, Friday, March 28, and Sunday, March 30, respectively. The Eagles (8-8, 1-2 MAC) and Broncos (9-8, 1-2 MAC) will meet on EMU’s home courts at 1 p.m. Friday in a rematch of last week’s 4-3 loss at WMU before the Eagles and RedHawks (4-8, 3-0 MAC) cap the weekend with a 1 p.m. contest Sunday.
FIRST SERVES
» The Eagles enter the weekend with an 8-8 overall record and stand 1-2 in MAC play after splitting a pair of matches last weekend, including a 4-3 loss at WMU (March 21) and a 4-3 home win over Ball State (March 23).
» EMU played two matches that ended in 4-3 scores last week, which is not rare, considering the company. The last time it happened in conference play was the final weekend of action in the 2021-22 season when the results flipped with the locations as EMU won at home over WMU, 4-3, before falling at Ball State, 4-3, two days later.
» Eastern is 7-1 at home this year and 18-1 overall in the last two seasons under Ryan Kucera. The Eagles won 13 consecutive home matches under Kucera before falling and have won five consecutive since then.
» With one win this weekend, the program would capture its 175th all-time MAC victory. The Eagles enter the weekend with an all-time league mark of 174-151.
» The match with Western Michigan will mark the final of seven meetings this year against teams from Michigan. The Eagles are 102-114 all-time against fellow Michigan schools and hold a 3-3 record this year following the 4-3 setback in Kalamazoo last week (March 21).
» The Eagles are 9-of-16 in claiming the doubles point this season. EMU claimed 13-of-23 last year, one season removed from earning the point just four times. All told, the Eagles have won 56.4 percent (22-of-39) doubles points under Ryan Kucera.
» The 2025 MAC Preseason Coaches Poll was released Jan. 7 with the Eagles voted to finish third with 35 points while Miami (48) and Toledo (38) were ranked ahead of EMU. Eastern was voted to finish fourth one year ago and did so to earn its first MAC Tournament appearance since 2018.
» The Eagles’ 2024-25 roster features 10 players, including six returnees and four newcomers. In total, nine different nations are represented on the roster, including the U.S., Argentina, Czechia, India, Israel, Mexico, North Macedonia, Poland, and Russia.
» Ryan Kucera returns for his second season as the team’s head coach and will look to guide the team to the MAC Tournament for the second year in a row, which would mark the first time it has happened since the 2014 and 2015 tournaments.
» Players are not the only addition to the roster this year as the coaching staff has added both Masha Polishchuk and Andrew Dobbs. Polishchuk, a MAC champion during her playing career at Ball State, will serve as a graduate assistant coach while Dobbs will serve as an undergraduate assistant.
HOME PROTECTION
Since taking over the program ahead of the 2023-24 season, the Eagles hold an 18-1 record at home under Ryan Kucera, a mark that included the Eagles going a perfect 11-0 at home last year and 7-1 this year with five consecutive wins to date. In the previous six seasons played ahead of Kucera’s arrival, the Eagles were 21-30, including a 3-4 mark in the 2022-23 season.
(MILE)STONE BREAKER
Eastern needs just one win this weekend to record its 175th all-time MAC victory. The Eagles enter the weekend sporting an all-time conference record of 174-151.
KNOW THE FOE: WESTERN MICHIGAN
The Broncos enter the weekend with a 10-8 overall record and stand 1-2 in the MAC after splitting two MAC matches at home last week, including their 4-3 win over EMU and a 6-1 loss to Northern Illinois. WMU holds a 1-5 record in road matches and has dropped its last four, including a 6-1 setback at Ball State to open league play.
IN THE SERIES: WESTERN MICHIGAN
The Eagles trail, 16-45, in the all-time series following the Broncos’ 4-3 win in Kalamazoo last week as the teams have now traded wins in the past seven competitions. When playing in Ypsilanti, the Eagles are 10-19 after winning 5-2 (April 19, 2024) last year to cap the team’s perfect 11-0 home record. The teams have traded wins in the last four matches in Ypsilanti.
THE LAST TIME VS. THE BRONCOS
The Eagles dropped a hard-fought 4-3 battle in Kalamazoo, March 21, as EMU’s comeback bid fell short. Down 2-0 following doubles and the first singles match, Prerna Vichare (No. 3) and Marta Komar (No. 5) won to tie the match at 2-2 before Viki Hazmukova (No. 1) won to tie the match at 3-3. It all came down to No. 2 where Daniella Shved fell in a marathon match, 6-7(3), 7-6(3), 6-7(6) to Christine Gouws.
MITTEN MATCHES
The match with Western Michigan Friday afternoon will mark the final of seven regular season matches against fellow Michigan teams with the Eagles holding a 3-3 record in those contests this season. At 102-114 all-time, Eastern has posted wins over Ferris State (two) and Saginaw Valley State with losses coming to Oakland, Michigan State, and WMU.
KNOW THE FOE: MIAMI
The RedHawks are 4-8 on the year but hold a 3-0 record in MAC play following a pair of 6-1 home wins over Bowling Green and Buffalo last week. The RedHawks, who swept the MAC weekly awards for singles and doubles last week, are 2-5 on the road this season with their 4-3 win at Toledo to open MAC play halting a two-match skid.
IN THE SERIES: MIAMI
Eastern trails, 6-44, in the all-time series with Miami as the RedHawks have won 20 consecutive meetings. The Eagles, who last won, 5-2, April 2, 2005, have been close to winning recently as three of the last four matches have ended in 4-3 scores, including last year’s MAC opener in Oxford. EMU has dropped its last nine at home against MU with the 2005 win capping a three-match home win streak in the series that saw three dominating wins from the Eagles with scores of 6-1 (March 29, 2002) and 7-0 (April 18, 2003) before the 5-2 win.
THE LAST TIME VS. REDHAWKS
Eastern dropped a 4-3 decision in Oxford, March 17, 2024, to open the MAC season. After securing the doubles point for a 1-0 lead, the Eagles would find themselves in a 3-1 hole as the RedHawks captured singles wins at No. 2, No. 1, and No. 5. EMU responded, however, with Sabina Brichackova winning at No. 6 before Kseniia Saenko captured a win at No. 4 to tie the match at 3-3. The hosts would capture the final point in a three-set battle for the 4-3 victory.
QUICK RECAP: EAGLES BOUNCE BACK
Following the 4-3 loss at WMU, the Eagles bounced back with a 4-3 home win over Ball State as the Eagles came from behind to claim the win. After dropping the doubles point, Daniella Shved tied the match at 1-1 with win at No. 2 and Marta Komar leveled the match at 2-2 with her win at No. 5. After BSU reclaimed the lead at 3-2, the Eagles would win the final two points in three-set comebacks with Viki Hazmukova won at No. 1 before Prerna Vichare clinched the match with her win at No. 3.
NAIL BITERS
Following last weekend’s matches with WMU and BSU, the Eagles have seen five of their matches in 2025 finish in one-point scores with EMU holding a 2-3 record, including a 1-1 mark in MAC play. All told, the Eagles are now 110-98 when the match is decided by one point and 43-45 in those matches against MAC foes. With the loss at WMU, EMU fell to 61-53 in one-point matches on the road (23-22 vs. MAC) while the win over the Cardinals saw EMU improve to 34-35 at home and 20-21 in MAC contests decided by one point.
QUITE THE PAIR
Sabina Brichackova and Prerna Vichare have been quite the team over the past three and one-half seasons as the duo has now played 69 career doubles matches together for the Eagles. The duo holds a record of 39-22, including 8-3 this season, with eight more matches marked as abandoned. The tandem got the season started well this past fall as they were the runners-up at the inaugural MAC Fall Individual Championships.
MAKING THE CLIMB
Sabina Brichackova has placed her name throughout the EMU record book as she has tallied 111 combined victories with 54 wins in singles play and 57 in doubles. For combined wins, Brichackova needs just 10 more to reach a tie for 17th place that includes Caryn Stube (1989-92) and Mariya Toncheva (2010-14) with 121 wins. In doubles play, her 57 wins currently rank 19th all-time in program history with the 60 wins by Naomi Mokelke (1989-92) next on the list while her 54 singles wins have her three away from tying Victoria Domina (2003-05) for 20th at 57.
UP THE LADDER
Prerna Vichare is trying to join her doubles partner on the career wins ledger as her 55 victories are one away from the top 20. With her next doubles win, she will join Miriam Westerink (2008-12) and Avi Gogvadze (2014-18) in a tie for 20th all-time with 56 career wins each.
IN A CLINCH
Viki Hazmukova has been the closer for the Eagles this season as she has won the clinching point for the team twice in three wins with both coming at the No. 2 singles position. Additionally, of the nine doubles points won, Hazmukova has been part of four winning teams, pairing with Marta Komar twice and once each with Sabina Brichackova and Iva Daneva.
POINTING IT OUT
In the 15 matches the Eagles played during the 2022-23 season, the team captured the doubles point just four times (26.7 percent). Since taking over the program ahead of the 2023-24 season, the Eagles have shown great growth in doubles play as the team has captured the doubles point in 22-of-37 matches under Ryan Kucera, a 59.5 percent win rate. After the 2023-24 team won 13-of-23 points (.565), this year’s team has captured 9-of-16 (.563) through the dual with Ball State.
ENDING A DROUGHT?
The goal every year is to win the MAC Tournament and earn a berth into the NCAA Tournament. The last time the Eagles were able to do so came in 2001 when they swept through the MAC Tournament hosted by Marshall with wins over Ball State (4-1), Western Michigan (4-2), and the host Thundering Herd (4-3). EMU advanced to the NCAA First Round where they fell at No. 8 Notre Dame, 0-4.
PRESEASON PROGNOSTICATIONS
The 2025 MAC Preseason Coaches Poll was released Jan. 7 with the Eagles earning 35 points to rank third on the list behind Miami (48 points) and Toledo (38). The remaining rankings, which are based upon votes from the league’s coaches, were Northern Illinois (30) in fourth, Ball State (35) fifth, Buffalo (23) sixth, Western Michigan (14) seventh, and Bowling Green (seven) eighth. Additionally, the coaches cast votes on who would win the MAC Tournament, which is slated for April 24-25 in Toledo, Ohio, with Miami earning five votes while EMU, Buffalo, and Toledo each earned one.
In Ryan Kucera‘s first season with the Eagles (2023-24), Eastern was voted tied for fourth in the preseason before finishing fourth and earning a berth in the MAC Tournament for the first time since 2018. EMU dropped a 4-3 decision to host Toledo in the semifinals.
LOOKING TO REPEAT
Last year, the Eagles finished fourth in the conference standings to earn the fourth and final position in the MAC Tournament, the team’s first appearance in the conference event since the 2018 championships. Should Eastern return to the tournament this year, it would mark the first time the Eagles have qualified for the MAC Tournament in back-to-back seasons since earning berths in the 2014 and 2015 events. Eastern lost to Miami, 4-2, in the final of the 2014 event before falling to the RedHawks, 4-1, in the semifinals one year later.
ON THE HORIZON
A pair of road contests await the Eagles next week as they are set to travel to play the University of Toledo, Friday, April 4, and the University at Buffalo, Sunday, April 6. Both matches are scheduled for 1 p.m. starts at their respective locations.
FOLLOW US
For all things EMU Tennis, be sure to check out the team’s social media accounts, including EMUEaglesTennis on X (formerly Twitter) and EMU_Tennis on Instagram.
FIRST SERVES
» The Eagles enter the weekend with an 8-8 overall record and stand 1-2 in MAC play after splitting a pair of matches last weekend, including a 4-3 loss at WMU (March 21) and a 4-3 home win over Ball State (March 23).
» EMU played two matches that ended in 4-3 scores last week, which is not rare, considering the company. The last time it happened in conference play was the final weekend of action in the 2021-22 season when the results flipped with the locations as EMU won at home over WMU, 4-3, before falling at Ball State, 4-3, two days later.
» Eastern is 7-1 at home this year and 18-1 overall in the last two seasons under Ryan Kucera. The Eagles won 13 consecutive home matches under Kucera before falling and have won five consecutive since then.
» With one win this weekend, the program would capture its 175th all-time MAC victory. The Eagles enter the weekend with an all-time league mark of 174-151.
» The match with Western Michigan will mark the final of seven meetings this year against teams from Michigan. The Eagles are 102-114 all-time against fellow Michigan schools and hold a 3-3 record this year following the 4-3 setback in Kalamazoo last week (March 21).
» The Eagles are 9-of-16 in claiming the doubles point this season. EMU claimed 13-of-23 last year, one season removed from earning the point just four times. All told, the Eagles have won 56.4 percent (22-of-39) doubles points under Ryan Kucera.
» The 2025 MAC Preseason Coaches Poll was released Jan. 7 with the Eagles voted to finish third with 35 points while Miami (48) and Toledo (38) were ranked ahead of EMU. Eastern was voted to finish fourth one year ago and did so to earn its first MAC Tournament appearance since 2018.
» The Eagles’ 2024-25 roster features 10 players, including six returnees and four newcomers. In total, nine different nations are represented on the roster, including the U.S., Argentina, Czechia, India, Israel, Mexico, North Macedonia, Poland, and Russia.
» Ryan Kucera returns for his second season as the team’s head coach and will look to guide the team to the MAC Tournament for the second year in a row, which would mark the first time it has happened since the 2014 and 2015 tournaments.
» Players are not the only addition to the roster this year as the coaching staff has added both Masha Polishchuk and Andrew Dobbs. Polishchuk, a MAC champion during her playing career at Ball State, will serve as a graduate assistant coach while Dobbs will serve as an undergraduate assistant.
HOME PROTECTION
Since taking over the program ahead of the 2023-24 season, the Eagles hold an 18-1 record at home under Ryan Kucera, a mark that included the Eagles going a perfect 11-0 at home last year and 7-1 this year with five consecutive wins to date. In the previous six seasons played ahead of Kucera’s arrival, the Eagles were 21-30, including a 3-4 mark in the 2022-23 season.
(MILE)STONE BREAKER
Eastern needs just one win this weekend to record its 175th all-time MAC victory. The Eagles enter the weekend sporting an all-time conference record of 174-151.
KNOW THE FOE: WESTERN MICHIGAN
The Broncos enter the weekend with a 10-8 overall record and stand 1-2 in the MAC after splitting two MAC matches at home last week, including their 4-3 win over EMU and a 6-1 loss to Northern Illinois. WMU holds a 1-5 record in road matches and has dropped its last four, including a 6-1 setback at Ball State to open league play.
IN THE SERIES: WESTERN MICHIGAN
The Eagles trail, 16-45, in the all-time series following the Broncos’ 4-3 win in Kalamazoo last week as the teams have now traded wins in the past seven competitions. When playing in Ypsilanti, the Eagles are 10-19 after winning 5-2 (April 19, 2024) last year to cap the team’s perfect 11-0 home record. The teams have traded wins in the last four matches in Ypsilanti.
THE LAST TIME VS. THE BRONCOS
The Eagles dropped a hard-fought 4-3 battle in Kalamazoo, March 21, as EMU’s comeback bid fell short. Down 2-0 following doubles and the first singles match, Prerna Vichare (No. 3) and Marta Komar (No. 5) won to tie the match at 2-2 before Viki Hazmukova (No. 1) won to tie the match at 3-3. It all came down to No. 2 where Daniella Shved fell in a marathon match, 6-7(3), 7-6(3), 6-7(6) to Christine Gouws.
MITTEN MATCHES
The match with Western Michigan Friday afternoon will mark the final of seven regular season matches against fellow Michigan teams with the Eagles holding a 3-3 record in those contests this season. At 102-114 all-time, Eastern has posted wins over Ferris State (two) and Saginaw Valley State with losses coming to Oakland, Michigan State, and WMU.
KNOW THE FOE: MIAMI
The RedHawks are 4-8 on the year but hold a 3-0 record in MAC play following a pair of 6-1 home wins over Bowling Green and Buffalo last week. The RedHawks, who swept the MAC weekly awards for singles and doubles last week, are 2-5 on the road this season with their 4-3 win at Toledo to open MAC play halting a two-match skid.
IN THE SERIES: MIAMI
Eastern trails, 6-44, in the all-time series with Miami as the RedHawks have won 20 consecutive meetings. The Eagles, who last won, 5-2, April 2, 2005, have been close to winning recently as three of the last four matches have ended in 4-3 scores, including last year’s MAC opener in Oxford. EMU has dropped its last nine at home against MU with the 2005 win capping a three-match home win streak in the series that saw three dominating wins from the Eagles with scores of 6-1 (March 29, 2002) and 7-0 (April 18, 2003) before the 5-2 win.
THE LAST TIME VS. REDHAWKS
Eastern dropped a 4-3 decision in Oxford, March 17, 2024, to open the MAC season. After securing the doubles point for a 1-0 lead, the Eagles would find themselves in a 3-1 hole as the RedHawks captured singles wins at No. 2, No. 1, and No. 5. EMU responded, however, with Sabina Brichackova winning at No. 6 before Kseniia Saenko captured a win at No. 4 to tie the match at 3-3. The hosts would capture the final point in a three-set battle for the 4-3 victory.
QUICK RECAP: EAGLES BOUNCE BACK
Following the 4-3 loss at WMU, the Eagles bounced back with a 4-3 home win over Ball State as the Eagles came from behind to claim the win. After dropping the doubles point, Daniella Shved tied the match at 1-1 with win at No. 2 and Marta Komar leveled the match at 2-2 with her win at No. 5. After BSU reclaimed the lead at 3-2, the Eagles would win the final two points in three-set comebacks with Viki Hazmukova won at No. 1 before Prerna Vichare clinched the match with her win at No. 3.
NAIL BITERS
Following last weekend’s matches with WMU and BSU, the Eagles have seen five of their matches in 2025 finish in one-point scores with EMU holding a 2-3 record, including a 1-1 mark in MAC play. All told, the Eagles are now 110-98 when the match is decided by one point and 43-45 in those matches against MAC foes. With the loss at WMU, EMU fell to 61-53 in one-point matches on the road (23-22 vs. MAC) while the win over the Cardinals saw EMU improve to 34-35 at home and 20-21 in MAC contests decided by one point.
QUITE THE PAIR
Sabina Brichackova and Prerna Vichare have been quite the team over the past three and one-half seasons as the duo has now played 69 career doubles matches together for the Eagles. The duo holds a record of 39-22, including 8-3 this season, with eight more matches marked as abandoned. The tandem got the season started well this past fall as they were the runners-up at the inaugural MAC Fall Individual Championships.
MAKING THE CLIMB
Sabina Brichackova has placed her name throughout the EMU record book as she has tallied 111 combined victories with 54 wins in singles play and 57 in doubles. For combined wins, Brichackova needs just 10 more to reach a tie for 17th place that includes Caryn Stube (1989-92) and Mariya Toncheva (2010-14) with 121 wins. In doubles play, her 57 wins currently rank 19th all-time in program history with the 60 wins by Naomi Mokelke (1989-92) next on the list while her 54 singles wins have her three away from tying Victoria Domina (2003-05) for 20th at 57.
UP THE LADDER
Prerna Vichare is trying to join her doubles partner on the career wins ledger as her 55 victories are one away from the top 20. With her next doubles win, she will join Miriam Westerink (2008-12) and Avi Gogvadze (2014-18) in a tie for 20th all-time with 56 career wins each.
IN A CLINCH
Viki Hazmukova has been the closer for the Eagles this season as she has won the clinching point for the team twice in three wins with both coming at the No. 2 singles position. Additionally, of the nine doubles points won, Hazmukova has been part of four winning teams, pairing with Marta Komar twice and once each with Sabina Brichackova and Iva Daneva.
POINTING IT OUT
In the 15 matches the Eagles played during the 2022-23 season, the team captured the doubles point just four times (26.7 percent). Since taking over the program ahead of the 2023-24 season, the Eagles have shown great growth in doubles play as the team has captured the doubles point in 22-of-37 matches under Ryan Kucera, a 59.5 percent win rate. After the 2023-24 team won 13-of-23 points (.565), this year’s team has captured 9-of-16 (.563) through the dual with Ball State.
ENDING A DROUGHT?
The goal every year is to win the MAC Tournament and earn a berth into the NCAA Tournament. The last time the Eagles were able to do so came in 2001 when they swept through the MAC Tournament hosted by Marshall with wins over Ball State (4-1), Western Michigan (4-2), and the host Thundering Herd (4-3). EMU advanced to the NCAA First Round where they fell at No. 8 Notre Dame, 0-4.
PRESEASON PROGNOSTICATIONS
The 2025 MAC Preseason Coaches Poll was released Jan. 7 with the Eagles earning 35 points to rank third on the list behind Miami (48 points) and Toledo (38). The remaining rankings, which are based upon votes from the league’s coaches, were Northern Illinois (30) in fourth, Ball State (35) fifth, Buffalo (23) sixth, Western Michigan (14) seventh, and Bowling Green (seven) eighth. Additionally, the coaches cast votes on who would win the MAC Tournament, which is slated for April 24-25 in Toledo, Ohio, with Miami earning five votes while EMU, Buffalo, and Toledo each earned one.
In Ryan Kucera‘s first season with the Eagles (2023-24), Eastern was voted tied for fourth in the preseason before finishing fourth and earning a berth in the MAC Tournament for the first time since 2018. EMU dropped a 4-3 decision to host Toledo in the semifinals.
LOOKING TO REPEAT
Last year, the Eagles finished fourth in the conference standings to earn the fourth and final position in the MAC Tournament, the team’s first appearance in the conference event since the 2018 championships. Should Eastern return to the tournament this year, it would mark the first time the Eagles have qualified for the MAC Tournament in back-to-back seasons since earning berths in the 2014 and 2015 events. Eastern lost to Miami, 4-2, in the final of the 2014 event before falling to the RedHawks, 4-1, in the semifinals one year later.
ON THE HORIZON
A pair of road contests await the Eagles next week as they are set to travel to play the University of Toledo, Friday, April 4, and the University at Buffalo, Sunday, April 6. Both matches are scheduled for 1 p.m. starts at their respective locations.
FOLLOW US
For all things EMU Tennis, be sure to check out the team’s social media accounts, including EMUEaglesTennis on X (formerly Twitter) and EMU_Tennis on Instagram.
