EVANSTON, Ill. – The Illinois women's tennis team secured its sixth straight win over Northwestern on Saturday when the Fighting Illini downed the Wildcats, 4-1, from the Vandy Christie Tennis Center. The Orange and Blue picked up a ranked win on both the top doubles and singles courts.
No. 45 Illinois improved to 11-11 on the season and 6-5 in Big Ten action. No. 44 Northwestern is now 11-12 overall and 4-7 in Big Ten play.
The Illini claimed their 14th doubles point of the season, striking first against the Wildcats. Illinois has won the opening tally eight times in Big Ten play.
After all three doubles matches started 1-1, Illinois picked up a break at No. 1 and No. 3 doubles to push out to a 4-1 advantage on both courts. The Illini would earn a 6-1 victory at No. 1 doubles, the second straight upset for No. 81 Megan Heuser and Kida Ferrari. The Illini duo improved to 7-10 on the season and 4-4 in B1G play with the win over Northwestern's No. 72-ranked tandem. At No. 3 doubles, McKenna Schaefbauer and Kasia Treiber would ultimately secure a 6-3 win, climbing to 13-6 in dual play and 7-2 in Big Ten action.
Schaefbauer pushed the Illini advantage with a 6-2, 6-2 win at No. 1 singles over No. 125-ranked Erica Jessel. The Illinois junior improved to 13-15 on the season with the victory and is up to five ranked wins.
Heuser followed with a 6-3, 6-1 win at No. 2 singles to push the Illinois lead to 3-0. The Illini senior owns a 13-11 record on the season and a 6-3 reading in Big Ten play.
Northwestern got on the board with a three-set win at No. 4 singles, moving the score to 3-1.
Treiber battled to a 7-6(0), 6-4 win at No. 6 singles to clinch the 4-1 victory for the Fighting Illini. The clinch marked her first of the season as she became the sixth different Illini to secure a match of the year. Treiber is up to a 10-14 record on the season and 4-4 in Big Ten matches. The Illini senior is the fifth Illinois player to reach double-digit wins.
FINAL SCORE: NO. 45 ILLINOIS (11-11, 6-5 B1G) 4, #44 NORTHWESTERN (11-12, 4-7 B1G) 1
Doubles
No. 1 – No. 81 Megan Heuser/Kida Ferrari def. No. 72 Lau/Dagan Fruchtman (NW) - 6-1
No. 2 – Alice Xu/Violeta Martinez vs. Pratt/Jessel (NW) - 5-3, unfinished
No. 3 – McKenna Schaefbauer/Kasia Treiber def. Feldman/Rabjohns (NW) - 6-3
Singles
No. 1 – McKenna Schaefbauer def. No. 125 Erica Jessel (NW) - 6-2, 6-2
No. 2 – Megan Heuser def. Britany Lau (NW) - 6-3, 6-1
No. 3 – Violeta Martinez vs. Neena Feldman (NW) - 2-6, 6-3, 1-0, unfinished
No. 4 – No. 112 Sydney Pratt (NW) def. Kida Ferrari - 3-6, 6-2, 6-1
No. 5 – Ariel Madatali vs. Kiley Rabjohns (NW) - 2-6, 5-5, unfinished
No. 6 – Kasia Treiber def. Autumn Rabjohns (NW) - 7-6(0), 6-4
Order of Finish
Doubles: 1, 3
Singles: 1, 2, 4, 6
Duration: 2:26
Played outdoors
NEXT UP
Next weekend, the Fighting Illini head east for matches at Indiana and No. 66 Purdue. Action vs. the Hoosiers is slated for Friday, April 18 at 3 p.m. CT. Regular-season play will conclude at Purdue on April 20 at 11 a.m. CT.
