Showdown with Washington Set for Friday Afternoon at Atkins

CHAMPAIGN, Ill.  – Illinois is set to close out its non-conference slate on Friday with a home meeting with future Big Ten foe Washington. The Fighting Illini and Huskies will square off in the second match of a tennis tripleheader at Atkins Tennis Center at 2 p.m. CT.

Friday's match will round out the Orange and Blue's out-of-conference slate, and they sit at 8-4 with Big Ten play two weeks away.

LAST TIME OUT

Six weekends into the season, Illinois holds an 8-4 record on the season after picking up a 4-0 victory over Tulsa at the Blue Gray Tennis Classic last weekend in Montgomery, Ala. The Illini went 1-2 as a team, also dropping contests against #36 Alabama and #59 Wake Forest.

Josie Frazier went 2-1 on the weekend while playing at No. 5 singles. Frazier picked up a straight-set 6-2, 6-1 victory against Tulsa's Myroslava Zelenchuk on Feb. 23 before earning Illinois' lone point against the Crimson Tide with a 6-2, 6-3 decision over Alabama's Anna Parkhomenko on Feb. 24.

ILLINI VS. THE FIELD

Illinois is 1-9 all-time against Washington including a 1-2 record against the Huskies under Evan Clark.

ILLINI NOTES 

• After receiving votes in the final two top-25 polls, Illinois moved up to No. 24 in the first computerized rankings of the season. The ranking was the best by the Illini since the 2019 campaign.
• On Feb. 21, Kasia Treiber was tabbed the Big Ten Women's Tennis Player of the Week - the first honor of her career. Treiber posted a 2-0 weekend at No. 3 singles in the Fighting Illini's wins over Brown and Marshall at Atkins Tennis Center. Both were straight-set victories.
• Illinois is off to a 5-0 start when playing at the Atkins Tennis Center this season. 
• Head coach Evan Clark is in his ninth year as the head coach of Illinois women's tennis and holds an overall dual record of 122-79 (.607) and is 58-28 (.674) in Big Ten play during his time as an Illini. Including his time as the head coach at UNC-Wilmington, Clark owns a 153-90 record overall.
• The Illini are coming off an 18-10 season with an 8-3 Big Ten record in 2022-23. The Illini's 18 wins tied the sixth-most in a single season in program history. UI earned the 14th appearance to the NCAA Team Tournament in program history. The last time Illinois made the NCAA Tournament as a team was the 2019 campaign. The 2023 appearance marked the third with Clark at the helm.
• Illinois returns six of its eight players from last season, including fifth-year senior Josie Frazier and senior Kate Duong. Additionally, Megan Heuser, Kasia Treiber, and Kida Ferrari return for their junior campaigns and Violeta Martinez begins her sophomore dual season. The Illini welcomed South Carolina-transfer, but Illinois native, McKenna Schaefbauer along with freshmen Rosie Seccia and Alice Xu.

DOUBLES POINTS

Jan. 14 vs. EIU - 2: Ferrari/Martinez, 3: Treiber/Xu
Jan. 20 vs. No. 15 Duke - 2: Duong/Frazier, 3: Ferrari/Martinez
Feb. 11 vs. Ole Miss - 2: Heuser/Xu, 3: Martinez/Treiber
Feb. 18 vs. Marshall - 1: Heuser/Xu, 2: Schaefbauer/Martinez
Feb. 23 vs. Tulsa - 1: Heuser/Xu, 2: Schaefbauer/Martinez
Feb. 23 vs. Wake Forest - 1: Heuser/Xu, 3: Frazier/Ferrari

CLINCHES

Jan. 14 vs. Missouri - Violeta Martinez (No. 4 singles)
Jan. 14 vs. EIU - Violeta Martinez (No. 2 singles)
Jan. 19 vs. Charlotte - Megan Heuser (No. 1 singles)
Jan. 28 vs. No. 23 UCF - Kasia Treiber (No. 3 singles)
Feb. 11 vs. Ole Miss - Kasia Treiber (No. 3 singles)
Feb. 17 vs. Brown - Josie Frazier (No. 5 singles)
Feb. 18 vs. Marshall - Kasia Treiber (No. 3 singles)
Feb. 23 vs. Tulsa - Josie Frazier (No. 5 singles)

RANKING NOTES

Team (1-75)

• 29 – Washington (9-3)
• 44 – Illinois (8-4)

Doubles (1-60)

• No. 34 Alexia Jacobs/Astrid Olsen (Washington)

Singles (1-125)

• No. 78 Alexia Jacobs (Washington)
• No. 118 Melissa Sakar (Washington)

Next Up

Following a weekend off, Illinois will host Maryland and Rutgers on March 15 and 17, respectively.