URBANA, Ill. – The No. 15 Illini will commence 2019 dual match season on Friday night at 6 p.m. when they host the Duke Blue Devils at Atkins Tennis Center. Live scoring and video will be available on FightingIllini.com. Shuttle services for students will be provided to and from the match starting at 5:25 p.m. CT from Huff Hall's Circle Drive to Atkins Tennis Center. Any student using the shuttle service is guaranteed a Knit Beanie.

Illinois has won their season-opening dual match in 12 of head coach Brad Dancer's 14 seasons as an Illini. Last season, the Orange and Blue traveled to Durham, N.C. to defeat Duke, 6-1. Clinching the doubles point for the Illini were duo Zeke Clark and Aleks Kovacevic. Currently, the Illini lead the series, 17-7.

Marketing Promos and Giveaways – Zero Chill Night

While it may be cold outside, fans can get heated up with some impressive tennis inside Atkins Tennis Center. The first 100 students will receive an Illini Knit Beanie. Jimmy John's will be providing the food for the night.

Scouting the Opposition | Duke (3-2)

Entering his 11th season as Duke's head coach, Ramsey Smith, was named the 11th head coach in program history on June 2008. Smith has compiled an overall record of 195-93 and a 79-34 Atlantic Coast Conference ledger with six 20-win seasons in the last nine campaigns… At the helm, Smith has taken the Blue Devils to the NCAA Team Championship in nine of his 10 seasons, winning the first-round match seven times and advancing to the Round of 16 five times… Led by All-ACC honorees Spencer Furman, Catalin Mateas, and Nick Stachowiak. The Blue Devils welcome sophomore-transfer Edu Güell, who has competed in the main draw of all four Junior Grand Slam events.

Host Illinois Earn Automatic Berth to ITA National Team Indoor Championships

The University of Illinois Men's Team will host the ITA National Team Indoor Championship on February 15-18, 2019 at Midtown Athletic Club in Chicago, Ill. In its 44th year of existence, this will be the fifth time the Orange and Blue has hosted this tournament with the last being in 2015. As the host site, Illinois received an automatic bid to the event and was exempt from competing in the ITA Kick-Off Weekend. The Illini have won the team championship twice in program history (2003, 2004).

Kovacevic Kicks-off 2019 with Weekly Conference Honor

Fighting Illini junior Aleks Kovacevic was named the Big Ten Tennis Athlete of the Week, as announced by the league office on Jan. 22. Kovacevic went 4-2 overall in the Illini's last tune-up tournament, the MLK Invitational in Atlanta, Ga.

Ranked No. 44, the junior swept his matches for the first day of competition against No. 12 Georgia and host Georgia Tech. His run was highlighted by an upset win over No. 2 Jan Zielinski (Georgia), defeating the Bulldog 6-2, 7-6(4). The conference honor marks the first time the New York native has won this award and first for the Illini men's tennis squad this season. The last Illini men's tennis player to earn this accomplishment was Illini alum and current professional tennis player, Aleks Vukic (April 24, 2018).

West Joins Dancer's Staff

Illinois tennis head coaches, Brad Dancer (Men's Tennis) and Evan Clark (Women's Tennis) announced on July 10, 2018 the addition of Eric West to their respective staffs as Director of Operations. He brings both Division I playing and coaching experience, along with high-level youth coaching experience to the Illini. During his collegiate career, West spent his last three years at Oklahoma state where he was selected as an All-Big 12 second-team selection in 2012 and totaled 47 career singles wins and 40 career doubles. He also helped the Cowboys achieve a spot in the top-25 national rankings several times throughout his career.

West joins the Fighting Illini Tennis programs after three seasons as an assistant coach for the Cincinnati Bearcats women's tennis program. Prior to Cincinnati, he worked as an assistant tennis professional at the Shadow Mountain Racquet Club & Oak Tree Country Club in Tulsa, Okla. Following his playing career, he also spent one season as a Volunteer Assistant Coach at Oklahoma State from 2012-13. Completed his professional career by participating in many ITF Future and ATP Challenger Tournaments.

Illini Lineup Returns

Illinois returns eight players from the 2017-18 squad, including six letterwinners. Without any seniors on the team, the Illini juniors Vuk Budic, Zeke Clark, Gui Gomes, Noe Khlif, and Aleks Kovacevic will provide leadership and guidance for the team. With a year under their belt, sophomore duo Alex Brown and Caleb Chakravarthi will add depth to the Illini lineup.

Newcomers

Head Coach Brad Dancer adds four freshmen to the program – Lucas Horve (Forsyth, Ill.), Keenan Mayo (Long Beach, Calif.), Siphosothando Montsi (East London, South Africa), and early enrollee Alex Bancila (Lake Bluff, Ill.). Local five-star recruits, Horve and Bancila, along with Mayo and Montsi are excpeted to make an immediate impact for the Illini after successful ITF junior careers.

In the Rankings

For the fourth consecutive time, the Illini opened up 2019 ranked in the top 20 nationally heading into dual match season. Currently at No. 15 in the Oracle/ITA team rankings, the Illini concluded a successful fall season, ranked amongst the nation's best. Illinois had over half of their roster represented in the post-fall season Oracle/ITA rankings. Both earning career-highs in singles play, Brown earned a top-10 finish, while Kovacevic ranked No. 44. In his first year of collegiate play, freshman Keenan Mayo placed No. 71, while juniors Noe Khlif and Clark ranked No. 90 and No. 92, respectively. After a successful fall season, Khlif and redshirt sophomore Gui Gomes made the ITA rankings for the first time in doubles play, ranked at No. 32 overall.

Next Serve

The Illini head to South Bend, Ind. to face the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Wednesday, Feb. 6 at 4 pm CT. Illinois has won the last six meetings against Notre Dame, including last season's win over the Fighting Irish, 4-1. In a competitive series, the Orange and Blue lead 28-24.

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