Illini Make 2015 Atkins Debut Friday
January 22, 2015 | Men's Tennis
Live Scoring
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The Fighting Illini men's tennis team will play two matches Friday, when they make their 2015 Atkins Tennis Center debut. First up will be Green Bay at 3 p.m. followed Ball State at 7 p.m. Ball State and Green Bay will also face off Friday morning at 10 a.m.
FOR STARTERS
The Illini return home to Champaign after upsetting No. 6 Baylor in Waco, Texas in the dual season opener. The Orange and Blue rallied from a 3-1 deficit with three straight victories by No. 31 Jared Hiltzik, No. 40 Tim Kopinski and No. 44 Aleks Vukic to clinch the match. The freshman Vukic, in his first collegiate dual match, clinched the win over the Bears in a third set tiebreaker.
HOME SWEET HOME
The Illini will look to extend their home winning streak in 2015. Illinois dominated on the Atkins Tennis courts in 2014, finishing with an undefeated home record (13-0) for the first time since 2004. The Illini took down three ranked opponents (#16 Notre Dame, #10 Texas and #8 Texas A&M) inside Atkins and hosted NCAA Regionals where they defeated Ball State and Memphis to advance to the Sweet 16.
2015 OUTLOOK
The Illini currently rank 11th in the nation, which is the same spot they ended the 2014 season at. Illinois returns everyone from a stellar 2014 season in which the Illini produced the most wins since 2006 (24-9) and reached the NCAA Sweet 16 for the seventh time under head coach Brad Dancer. The Orange and Blue currently have four ranked singles players in No. 31 Jared Hiltzik, No. 40 Tim Kopinski, No. 44 Aleks Vukic and No. 62 Aron Hiltzik. Illinois also has the No. 3 doubles team in the nation in Kopinski and Ross Guignon.
SCOUTING THE PHOENIX
Green Bay enters the weekend 1-0 on the season after defeating Cardinal Stritch (6-0) in their dual season opener. Green Bay was voted the unanimous favorite to repeat as Horizon League Champions in 2015. The Phoenix earned a birth into the NCAA tournament in 2014 by winning the conference tournament. Green Bay is lead in singles by Michael Tenzer who ranks 77th in the nation.
Ball State will also arrive to Urbana with a 1-0 mark. The Cardinals earned a 6-1 victory over Detroit Mercy on Saturday. Ball State returns six letterwinners from last season, which the Cardinals posted a 14-12 overall record but were crowned the MAC Tournament champions. With the conference tournament victory, Ball State traveled to Urbana for the NCAA regional. Illinois shut out Ball State 4-0 in the first round. The Cardinals are lead by seniors Ray Leonard and Patrick Ellott.
UP NEXT
After Friday, Illinois will have a week to prepare for the arrival of No. 12 Duke on Jan. 30 at 6 p.m. and No. 7 North Carolina on Jan. 31 at 6 p.m.
