URBANA, Ill. – Illinois Women's Tennis picked up its fourth-consecutive win and improved to 9-6 overall after sweeping the Iowa Hawkeyes 7-0 from inside the Atkins Tennis Center on Friday, April 1. The Illini improved to 3-1 in Big Ten play with the victory while Iowa dropped to 10-10 and 0-6 in the conference.
"I thought we played really well tonight," opened Illinois head coach Evan Clark. "It's tough to get a win in the Big Ten period, let alone a 7-0 victory. I was really pleased with the way that we took care of business"
Illinois opened the evening with a pair of victories on the doubles courts to claim the match's first point. Alexis Casati and Daniela Pedraza Novak notched a 6-2 win at No. 3 doubles and No. 46 Louise Kwong and Ines Vias produced a 6-4 defeat of Iowa's Reimchen/Douglas duo at No. 1. Jerricka Boone and Madie Baillon were leading 5-4 when doubles play was abandoned.
UI's doubles play has been exceptional this season, with the Illini owning an overall record of 29-8. Kwong and Vias are now 18-6 overall on the season and 4-0 in Big Ten action. Casati and Pedraza Novak worked to their 10th win as a tandem on the season against the Hawkeyes. Illinois has now won the doubles tally in 13 of 15 matches this season.
Over on the singles courts, Vias took down her Hawkeye counterpart in a brief 6-0, 6-0 contest to put the Orange and Blue up 2-0 in the match. The Illini freshman is now 4-2 when playing at No. 3 singles.
Jaclyn Switkes was next to wrap up play, taking a 6-4, 6-2 decision at No. 6 singles over Iowa's Aimee Tarun. Switkes is one of two Illini to improve to 4-0 in singles conference action.
In back-to-back finishes, Kwong and Casati clinched the Illini victory with wins on the top two courts.
Kwong fired off a 6-1, 6-4 win at No. 1 while Casati battled to a 6-3, 6-4 win in the No. 2 slot. Both junior Illini athletes are now 2-2 in Big Ten play.
Boone clinched her match at No. 5 singles in straight sets. The opening framed proved difficult, as the junior went to a tiebreaker with her Iowa opposition before winning the 7-2 decider. In the second set, Boone worked to a 6-4 win and picked up her first Big Ten dual victory of the season.
Baillon put the finishing touches on Illinois' victory, completing the sweep of the Hawkeyes. After falling behind 0-3 in her opening set, the junior rallied back to take the frame by a 7-5 advantage. The Champaign, Illinois, native went on to win the second set 6-3 to improved her record to 11-3 overall and 4-0 in league play.
"Tonight, singles was the difference," shared Clark. "I can't remember the last time we won 12 sets in singles for straight-set victories. To get a 7-0 victory tonight, I was really proud of the team. We keep talking about six people showing up, and six people showed up for us tonight."
With the win, Illinois improved to 28-25 all-time against Iowa and has claimed the two most recent tallies of the series.
NEXT UP
On Sunday, April 3, the Fighting Illini will host the Nebraska Huskers in an 11 a.m. CT contest. The Huskers currently own a record of 17-2 and will play Northwestern before heading to town.
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NO. 53 ILLINOIS 7, IOWA 0
Doubles
1: Louise Kwong/Ines Vias (ILL) def. Reimchen/Douglas (Iowa) – 6-4
2: Jerricka Boone/Madie Baillon (ILL) vs. Tarun/Huckleby (Iowa) – 5-4, unfinished
3: Alexis Casati/Daniela Pedraza Novak (ILL) def. Toms/Tambin (Iowa) – 6-2
Singles
1: Louise Kwong (ILL) def. Anastasia Reimchen (Iowa) – 6-1, 6-4
2: Alexis Casati (ILL) def. Zoe Douglas (Iowa) – 6-3, 6-4
3: Ines Vias (ILL) def. Kristen Thoms (Iowa) – 6-0, 6-0
4: Madie Baillon (ILL) def. Annette Dohanics (Iowa) – 7-5, 6-3
5: Jerricka Boone (ILL) def. Adorable Huckleby (Iowa) – 7-6(2), 6-4
6: Jaclyn Switkes (ILL) def. Aimee Tarun (Iowa) – 6-4, 6-2
Order of finish: 3, 1, 2 (uf) & 3, 6, 1, 2, 5, 4
