URBANA, Ill. – Fighting Illini women's tennis got back on track with a 4-0 sweep of Iowa State to kick off another weekend in Atkins Tennis Center. The Orange and Blue earned the doubles point and picked up singles wins at No. 5, 6, and 1, respectively, to clinch the victory.
Illinois moves to 3-5 on the season and 3-4 at home this season as the squad continues to work through its gauntlet of a schedule. The Fighting Illini are in the midst of a nine-match stretch against Power 4 opponents, not shying away from the toughest out-of-conference competition.Â
After falling on the top doubles court, Illinois' duos picked up wins at No. 2 (6-2) and No. 3 (6-2), respectively, to earn the first point of the match. Alice Xu and Violeta Martinez moved up to No. 2 doubles for the first time this season and secured their second straight victory, while improving to 4-1 overall. McKenna Schaefbauer and Kasia Treiber earned a win in their first action at No. 3 doubles and improved to 4-4 in dual matches this season.
Illinois won the opening set of singles play on five of six courts. Treiber picked up her second win of the day and gave the Fighting Illini a 2-0 lead in the match after cruising to a 6-0, 6-4 victory at No. 5 singles.Â
At the opposite end of Atkins Tennis Center, Xu was the next off the courts after earning a 6-0, 6-1 victory at No. 6. Xu made her first singles appearance since the spring season opener at Notre Dame, earning her first dual win over the campaign, and pushed Illinois' lead to 3-0 in the match.
In a race to the finish, Schaefbauer would ultimately clinch the victory for Illinois as she earned a win on the top court over her No. 70-ranked counterpart. The Illini junior trailed 0-1 and 1-2 but would rattle off five consecutive games to win the opening frame 6-1. Schaefbauer went up 2-0 in the second set but Iowa State's Anna Kuearum battled back to knot the frame at 2-all. From there, Schaefbauer blanked her opposition to earn another 6-2 decision and earn her first clinch of the season.
Schaefbauer is now 4-2 vs. ranked opponents on the singles courts this season and becomes Illinois' second player to double-digit wins in singles play.
FINAL SCORE: ILLINOIS (3-5) 4, IOWA STATE (4-2) 0
Doubles
No. 1 – Ramos/Kuearum (ISU) def. No. 61 Megan Heuser/Kida Ferrari - 6-0
No. 2 – Alice Xu/Violeta Martinez def. Alberto/San Martin (ISU) - 6-2
No. 3 – McKenna Schaefbauer/Kasia Treiber def. Pretorius/Camblor (ISU) - 6-2
Singles
No. 1 – McKenna Schaefbauer vs. No. 70 Anna Supapitch Kuearum (ISU) - 6-2, 6-2
No. 2 – Megan Heuser vs. Julia Camblor (ISU) - 4-6, 3-4, unfinished
No. 3 – Violeta Martinez vs. Mari Paz Alberto Vilar (ISU) - 7-6(3), 1-0, unfinished
No. 4 – Kida Ferrari vs. Cristina Ramos Sierra (ISU) - 6-3, 4-3, unfinished
No. 5 – Kasia Treiber def. Suzanie Pretorius (ISU) - 6-0, 6-4
No. 6 – Alice Xu def. Gabriela Felix (ISU) - 6-0, 6-1
Order of Finish
Doubles: 1, 2, 3
Singles: 5, 6, 1
Duration: 1:46
Attendance: 89
Played indoors
NEXT UP
The Illinois women's tennis team is back in action on Saturday, Feb. 15, as part of a triple header with the men's team. Coach Clark and company will host No. 22 Baylor for a 3 p.m. CT match in Atkins Tennis Center. Saturday's match vs. the Bears will mark Illinois' fourth contest of the season against a top 25 team.
