Nov. 18, 2010

Complete 2010-11 Schedule

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The University of Illinois men's tennis team announced its 2011 spring schedule on Thursday, highlighted by eight matches against opponents that finished in the top-25 of the final Campbell's/ITA national rankings last season, including five in the top-10.

The Illini will host a three-day tournament, Jan. 13-16, in Sarasota, Fla., to start the spring, before opening the dual season on Jan. 21 at perennial powerhouse Virginia, which finished at No. 3 in the country last year. To close out the month, Illinois will once again serve as host for the ITA Kick-Off Weekend, Jan. 28-29 and will welcome Denver, Notre Dame and Oklahoma to Atkins Tennis Center for the two-day event.

The month of February will feature four straight home matches against top-15 programs, including Duke (Feb. 4), Tennessee (Feb. 5), Kentucky (Feb. 11) and Florida (Feb. 12), before the Illini head west for the ITA National Team Indoor Championships, Feb. 18-21 in Seattle, Wash.

After a two-week break, Illinois will return home to host its only doubleheader of the season against Ball State and Illinois State on March 4, before hitting the road for matches at Iowa (March 6), Notre Dame (March 8) and Texas A&M (March 12).

The Illini will face Big Ten opponents for their nine remaining matches, including home contests against Penn State (March 26), Ohio State (March 27), which finished No. 5 in the country last season, Northwestern (April 10), Minnesota (April 22) and Wisconsin (April 24) for Senior Day.

The Big Ten Tournament will be held April 28-May 1 at Wisconsin, with the NCAA Championships being held May 19-30 at the Taube Tennis Center in Stanford, Calif.