April 1, 2004
The 24th-ranked Illinois women's tennis team will wrap up a four-match homestand by hosting Wisconsin and Northwestern this weekend at the UI Atkins Tennis Center. The Illini will take on the Badgers this Saturday with competition beginning at 11 am. On Sunday, the Orange and Blue host seventh-ranked Wildcats in another 11 a.m. contest.
The Illini are currently on a five-match winning streak, which includes a pair of Big Ten victories, against Minnesota and Iowa last weekend. History is on the side of the visitors in these upcoming matches. Illinois holds an 8-20 all-time record against Wisconsin and a 6-34 mark against Northwestern. But Illinois has been playing well of late. The Orange and Blue (11-3, 2-1) is currently tied with Ohio State for third place in the Big Ten. Illinois' only conference loss came in a road match at Purdue in early March.
"We have been improving every week," said UI Head Coach Sujay Lama. "I like the way we have been competing and preparing for each match. Our kids are having fun out there on the court."
Seniors Jennifer McGaffigan and Tiffany Eklov lead the UI attack. McGaffigan is Illinois' only ranked singles play at No. 34. Eklov has been dominating her singles opponents on the way to a 12-2 singles record. In doubles, the Illini are led by the ninth-ranked duo of McGaffigan and junior Cynthya Goulet.
One of the most interesting aspects of Saturday's contest with Wisconsin is the fact that Jennifer McGaffigan is likely to face her younger sister, 58th-ranked Katie McGaffigan, for the first time in their collegiate careers-not once, but twice. The elder McGaffigan has been playing at No. 1 singles and doubles all season and for much of her career, while Katie, a junior, moved into those top spots in the Badger lineup more recently. (A side note-their sister, Laura, is a freshman on the Indiana tennis team, but is not as likely to play against her oldest sister when the Illini go to Bloomington, Ind., later this month. Laura has been playing at No. 3 and No. 4 singles for the Hoosiers.)
Although the top of the Illinois lineup has been solid with McGaffigan and Eklov, there has been a little more competition lately at some of the other positions. Since senior Eva Choe's recent return from an ACL injury, she has posted a 4-0 record at the No. 6 spot. Sophomore Brianna Knue has heated up at No. 5; she has been victorious in her five singles matches during the current UI winning streak.
"What has happened with the lower spots," said Lama, "is that Eva got healthy, which resulted in an incredible competition for those spots. Emily (Wang), Pavlina (Akritas), Eva and Brianna are battling for spots now, and that is something we didn't have earlier in the season. That competition, and the fact that they are all pushing one another has resulted in whoever is playing at the 5 and 6 positions is coming ready to play."
Wisconsin comes into this weekend's match-up with a 7-8 overall record and an 0-2 Big Ten record with losses to Northwestern and Indiana.
Northwestern currently has a 12-3 overall record and a 2-0 Big Ten mark with wins over Indiana and Wisconsin. The Wildcats will travel to Purdue Saturday before facing the Illini on Sunday. Northwestern boasts the No. 3 singles player in the nation, Cristelle Grier, and also 38th-ranked Jessica Rush. In doubles, Grier and Rush compose the country's No. 2 doubles team. The Wildcats finished second in the Big Ten last year, ending a four-year stretch of finishing first. They have also won five straight Big Ten Tournament Championships dating back to 1999.
"We're looking forward to playing two quality teams this weekend," said Lama. "Our players understand that they need to be very focused for every single match. We cannot afford to let up, especially at this time of year."
