Results
EVANSTON, Ill. – In a match that spanned six hours and was played both outdoors and indoors, the sixth-seeded Illinois women's tennis team fell just short of upsetting the host, No. 26 Northwestern. On Friday, April 24, in the Big Ten Tournament, Illinois fell in the semifinals 4-3 to third-seeded Northwestern. The loss snapped the Fighting Illini's seven-match winning streak and moved the unit to 14-10 on the season.
Illinois put up a convincing fight as they scored three of the match's first four points, including the doubles point. The first tandem off the doubles courts was Grace Tapak and Madie Baillon. The duo fell 8-6 for their first loss when working together of the season.
On the next court over, Melissa Kopinski and Louise Kwong were putting the finishing touches on their upset at No. 1 singles. The Illinois duo defeated No. 39 Alicia Barnett and Erin Larner in a down to the wire contest. Neither side ever gained more than a one-game lead. In the end, the Illini fought to a 7-2 decision in the tiebreaker after jumping out to a 6-0 lead. Kopinski and Kwong are now 15-4 in doubles action on the dual season.
The doubles win put Kopinski in elite company in the record book. She is now in a three-way tie for third on the all-time doubles wins list at 87.
Doubles was decided over on court two, where Jerricka Boone and Alexis Casati got the best of Northwestern's Doshi/Rischbieth combination in an 8-5 fashion.
Shortly after Illinois took a 1-0 advantage in the match, the weather took a turn for the worst and play would be moved indoors. Due to another quarterfinal match going on at the same time, Illinois only had access to three indoor courts. Lineup spots four through six were able to finish their matches first.
First off the singles courts was Boone, who fell 6-2, 6-2. The loss tied the match at 1-1. Illinois wouldn't back down, though.
Freshman Jade Hilton picked up another point for the Orange and Blue after a three-set thriller. Hilton claimed the opening set 6-1, but dropped the second 2-6. She jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the third set before shutting the door with a final line of 6-1, 2-6, 6-2 for her ninth win of the season and her third-straight victory.
On the next court, Baillon made an incredible comeback after falling 6-3 in the first set and going down 5-3 in the second frame. She would go on to win nine-straight games spanning two sets. She won the second set 7-5 and then opened a 5-0 lead in the third set before her streak closed. Baillon relinquished just one game before closing the match with a 6-1 win in the third set, which gave Illinois a 3-1 lead in the match. The sophomore is 11-6 on the dual season.
Casati was the next Illini to finish. Northwestern pulled within one point with the straight-set 6-4, 7-5 victory on the first court. Kopinski finished up next, falling 6-4, 6-3 at No. 2. Kwong was the final Fighting Illini competitor to finish playing. She fell in straight-sets of 6-3, 6-3, which gave the Wildcats their fourth and final point to advance to the Big Ten Tournament semifinals.
"We certainly put up quite a fight today and ending our regular season in general," shared head coach Michelle Dasso. "We are playing our best tennis right now, which is a culmination of a year's efforts, but today slipped through our fingers. I'm so grateful to have Evan Clark on my staff and appreciate all of our team's efforts throughout the year."
