Feb. 11, 2011
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -
The No. 29 Illini women's tennis team (2-4) will play its final match of the month this Sunday against 26th-ranked South Carolina (3-1) at 11 a.m. at Atkins Tennis Center. The match will mark just the second-ever meeting between the two programs, as the Illini look to avenge a 4-3 loss last season in Columbia.
Live scoring will be available HERE.
CAMPBELL/ITA NATIONAL TEAM RANKINGS
In new team rankings released Feb. 8, Illinois dropped one spot to No. 29, while South Carolina fell two spots to No. 26. New singles and doubles rankings will be released on Monday.
SCOUTING SOUTH CAROLINA
South Carolina is 3-1 to start the season, picking up wins over South Carolina State, Furman and Florida International. Its lone loss of the year came in the first round of the ITA Kick-Off Weekend against Arizona State on Jan. 29 and it will make a stop at Purdue on Saturday before facing the Illini the following day. Anya Morgina leads the Gamecocks at No. 37 in the rankings, followed by Dijana Stojic (No. 93) and Katerina Popova (No. 117), while in doubles, Morgina and Dominika Kanakova checked in at No. 37.
LAST TIME OUT
The Illini split a pair of home matches last weekend, defeating No. 35 DePaul, 5-2, before falling to No. 26 Virginia, 5-2. Against DePaul, Illinois swept doubles for the first time this season and claimed four of six singles matches en route to victory. No. 100 sophomore Rachael White clinched the match at No. 2 singles for her 10th win of the season.
TOP 10 RECRUITING CLASS
Two standout recruits will join the Fighting Illini women's tennis team for the 2011-12 season, as head coach Michelle Dasso last month announced the addition of Julia Jamieson (Wilmette, Ill./Loyola Academy) and Melissa Kopinski (Palos Hills, Ill./Amos Alonzo Stagg). Kopinski was rated a blue-chip recruit, while Jamieson is a five-star, earning Illinois the No. 9 recruiting class for next season.
UP NEXT
Illinois will be off until next month when it travels to Penn State for its Big Ten opener on March 4.
