University of Illinois
TCU
Illini Host TCU, Virginia This Weekend
March 1, 2018 | Men's Tennis
Match 11 and 12: Illinois vs. TCU, Virginia
| Date | Friday - 6 pm vs. TCU | Sunday - 12 pm vs. Virginia |
| Location | Atkins Tennis Center | Urbana, Ill. |
| Live Links | Live Scoring and Video |
| 2018 Information | Match Notes | Record Book |
The No. 9 Fighting Illini men's tennis team returns to the Atkins Tennis Center for a three-match homestand beginning with the TCU Horned Frogs on Friday night at 6 pm. Illinois then competes against the 2017 NCAA Champions, Virginia, in a Sunday afternoon match at noon. UI is coming off a 4-3 loss against Kentucky on Sunday in Lexington.
Match Points
- UI opens a three-match homestand on Friday night with TCU followed by a Sunday afternoon contest against Virginia. Illinois will complete the home stretch three days later as the Notre Dame Fighting Irish travel to Champaign next Wednesday night.
- The Illini follow the Illinois women's tennis team on Friday night. For the first time in Illinois Tennis history, both teams are ranked in the Top-10. UI joins UCLA, North Carolina and Duke as the only other schools to have teams on the men's and women's sides in the Top-10.
- Illinois will take on TCU for the first time since the Horned Frogs ended the Illini's 2017 campaign in the NCAA Round of 16 with a 4-1 win. Illinois has not topped TCU since a 5-2 win on March 12, 2008.
- The defending NCAA Champions, Virginia, will return to Champaign for the first time since the Orange and Blue upset then-No. 2-ranked Virginia in a 4-3 thriller on February 27, 2016.
99 and Counting...
With his win over Kentucky's Will Bushamuka on Sunday, senior Aleks Vukic is one win away from reaching 100 career singles victories at Illinois. The Sydney, Australia, native would be the 15th player in Illinois men's tennis history to reach 100 career singles wins and the first since three-time All-American, Jared Hiltzik, acheived the feat in 2016.
Sophomore Success: Kovacevic Rolling in 2018
Sophomore Aleks Kovacevic has picked up right where he left off in 2018. The New York native is currently riding a six-match singles winning streak that began on February 2 at Duke. Kovacevic has won each of those matches in straight sets with three of them involving a tiebreaker. The victories at Duke and against Florida clinched the match for UI. In doubles, Kovacevic and fellow-sophomore Zeke Clark have clinched the last two doubles points and four overall for the Illini this season.
ITA National Team Indoor Championships Recap
The Illini earned a 2-1 record at the 2018 ITA National Team Indoor Championships last weekend in Seattle. Illinois opened the tournament by dropping a 4-2 decision to then-No. 7 UCLA. The Orange and Blue bounced back with a 4-1 win over Duke, where strong singles play from on courts three through six gave Illinois the victory. On Sunday, Illinois swept then-No. 10 Florida by taking the doubles point and securing wins at the No. 1, 5 and 6 positions. The win over UF was the first for UI since February 12, 2011.
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