Fighting Illini Set for NCAA Tournament First Round Match vs. No. 30 Arizona

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The No. 38-ranked Illinois women's tennis team opens the 2025 NCAA Tournament on Friday morning in the First Round hosted by seventh-seeded Virginia. The Orange and Blue will face No. 30 Arizona on Saturday at 9 a.m. CT from the Virginia Tennis Facility at the Boar's Head Resort.

Arizona enters the tournament with a 19-10 overall record, including an 8-5 mark in Big 12 play. The Wildcats are 3-2 in neutral matches this season and 5-8 overall when playing away from home. UA has made back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time since 2011-12, capping off a strong season that saw them reach the Big 12 Championship quarterfinals.

Headed to its third-straight NCAA Tournament, No. 38 Illinois is 14-12 on the season, including an 8-5 record in Big Ten play. The Illini are 1-1 in neutral matches this season and 6-4 overall in contests away from home. This season, the Orange and Blue have faced nine top-25 ranked teams heading into the NCAA Tournament.

The second match of the First Round from the Charlottesville site is [7] No. 7 Virginia (20-5; 10-2 ACC) vs. FDU (11-7; 6-0 NEC), which is set for 12 p.m. on Friday. The winners of the First Round matches will face off on Saturday at 3 p.m. CT in the Second Round.

LAST TIME OUT

The Illini opened the 2025 postseason with a Big Ten Women's Tennis Tournament First Round win over 10th-seeded Northwestern. The victory allowed Illinois to make its 17th straight quarterfinal appearance – a streak that began in 2008. The Fighting Illini would bow out with a loss in the quarterfinals to eventual champion, [2] No. 9 Ohio State.

ILLINI VS. THE FIELD

Illinois is 1-6 all-time against Arizona, with the sides meeting twice during the 2023 dual campaign and splitting the decisions. Those are the only two meetings with the Wildcats during Clark's time at the helm.

Illinois is 2-3 all-time against Virginia. The sides met in 2019 when UVA claimed a 4-3 decision.

The Illini and FDU have never crossed paths.

NCAA TOURNAMENT

• 2025 marks the 16^th appearance for the Fighting Illini in the NCAA Championships.
• The Illini have a 4-15 record in NCAA Tournament play.
• Illinois has reached the Round of 32 four times in program history (2001, 2003, 2009, 2018).

ILLINI NOTES

• Head coach Evan Clark is in his 10th year as the head coach of Illinois women's tennis, holds an overall dual record of 146-99 (.596), and is 74-36 (.673) in Big Ten play during his time as an Illini. Including his time as the head coach at UNC-Wilmington, Clark owns a 177-110 record overall.
• Evan Clark is now the program's all-time winningest head coach at 146 victories in the midst of his 10th season at the helm. He passed Jennifer Roberts, who coached at Illinois for 11 seasons from 1988-98 (138 wins).
• Clark also owns 74 wins in Big Ten play, surpassing Roberts' Illinois record at 68.
• Illinois owns a 80-32 record when playing at home under Evan Clark (begins 2016 dual season).
• While hosting the 2025 ITA Team Indoor Championships, Illinois faced the nation's best, competing against No. 2 Texas A&M, No. 3 Oklahoma State, and No. 6 UCLA. The following weekend, Illinois welcomed No. 22 Baylor to the Atkins Tennis Center, visited No. 17 Wisconsin, hosted No. 20 Washington, visited No. 3 Michigan, hosted No. 11 Ohio State, and then met the No. 9-ranked Buckeyes again in the Big Ten Tournament for its ninth Top-25 match of the season.
• After winning both the Jan. 25, 2025 out-of-conference victory over Northwestern, the in-league dual in Evanston on April 12, and then neutral-site Big Ten Tournament match on April 23, Illinois has now won seven consecutive matches over the Wildcats. 
• Four Fighting Illini women's tennis players were recognized by the league office with All-Big Ten honors. Megan Heuser and McKenna Schaefbauer earned Second Team All-Big Ten accolades, Ariel Madatali was named to the All-Freshman Team, and Kasia Treiber was acknowledged as a Sportsmanship Award honoree.
• Fighting Illini freshman Ariel Madatali leads the team with 18 wins on the singles courts.
• Illinois' top doubles duo of Megan Heuser and Kida Ferrari earned a 6-4 upset win over Ohio State's No. 10-ranked tandem on April 6. The following week, the Illini senior pair was ranked No. 81 in the ITA doubles rankings. The following weekend, the Illini duo downed Northwestern's No. 72-ranked team.
• Violeta Martinez earned ranked wins on both the doubles and singles courts in Illinois' loss to No. 6 UCLA. On the doubles courts, Martinez and Alice Xu teamed up to take down UCLA's No. 30 ranked duo. Martinez would get the Fighting Illini on the board with a straight-set upset (6-4, 6-4) of UCLA's No. 53 Elisa Wagle.
• McKenna Schaefbauer earned her first clinch of the season in Illinois' 4-0 sweep of Iowa State, taking down No. 70 Anna Kuearum, 6-2, 6-2.
• Ariel Madatali's first-career clinch was also the first dual win of her career, which came in Illinois' 4-2 win over Northwestern.
• Megan Heuser owns a team-best four clinches this season.
• During the preseason, junior McKenna Schaefbauer was selected to the Big Ten Women's Tennis Players to Watch List. Schaefbauer is coming off of a successful sophomore campaign that featured a 17-10 overall singles record and 18-16 overall on the doubles courts. The transfer appeared at all six singles slots and all three doubles courts for the Illini in 2024.
• Illinois has now made the NCAA Tournament in three-straight seasons for the first time under Clark and third time in program history. This season's appearance marks the fifth with Clark at the helm.

DOUBLES POINTS

Jan. 18 at Notre Dame – 2: Schaefbauer/Treiber, 3: Xu/Madatali
Jan. 25 vs. Northwestern – 1: Heuser/Ferrari, 3: Martinez/Xu
Feb. 2 vs. Colorado – 1: Heuser/Ferrari, 2: Schaefbauer/Treiber
Feb. 14 vs. Iowa State – 2: Martinez/Xu, 3: Schaefbauer/Treiber
March 1 vs. Western Michigan – 1: Heuser/Ferrari, 2: Martinez/Xu
March 1 vs. Chicago State – 2: Schaefbauer/Treiber, 3: Madatali/Seccia
March 7 at Minnesota – 1: Heuser/Ferrari, 3: Schaefbauer/Treiber
March 14 vs. Iowa – 2: Martinez/Xu, 3: Schaefbauer/Treiber
March 16 vs. Nebraska – 1: Ferrari/Heuser, 2: Martinez/Xu
March 24 vs. Washington - 2: Martinez/Xu, 3: Schaefbauer/Treiber
March 30 at Michigan State - 1: Martinez/Xu, 2: Schaefbauer/Treiber
April 5 vs. Penn State - 2: Martinez/Xu, 3: Schaefbauer/Treiber
April 6 vs. Ohio State - 1: Heuser/Ferrari, 2: Martinez/Xu
April 12 at Northwestern - 1: Heuser/Ferrari, 3: Schaefbauer/Treiber
April 18 at Indiana - 2: Martinez/Xu, 3: Schaefbauer/Treiber
April 20 at Purdue - 2: Martinez/Xu, 3: Schaefbauer/Treiber
April 23 vs. Northwestern: 1: Heuser/Ferrari, 3: Schaefbauer/Treiber

CLINCHES

Jan. 25 vs. Northwestern – No. 4 singles, Ariel Madatali (2-6, 6-2, 6-2)
Feb. 2 vs. Colorado – No. 2 singles, Megan Heuser (6-7(7), 6-1, 6-3)
Feb. 14 vs. Iowa State – No. 1 singles, McKenna Schaefbauer (6-2, 6-2)
March 2 vs. Western Michigan – No. 3 singles, Violeta Martinez (7-5, 6-7(2), 1-0 (10-3)
March 2 vs. Chicago State – No. 4 singles, Ariel Madatali (6-0, 6-0)
March 7 at Minnesota – No. 2 singles, Megan Heuser (6-4, 6-1)
March 16 vs. Nebraska – No. 2 singles, Megan Heuser (6-4, 6-4)
March 22 vs. Oregon - No. 5 singles, Kida Ferrari (6-3, 7-5)
March 30 at Michigan State - No. 2 singles, Megan Heuser (6-3, 2-6, 6-4)
April 5 vs. Penn State - No. 5 singles, Ariel Madatali (6-2, 6-1)
April 12 at Northwestern - No. 6 singles, Kasia Treiber (7-6(0), 6-4)
April 18 at Indiana - No. 5 singles, Kasia Treiber (6-3, 2-6, 6-3)
April 20 at Purdue - No. 1 singles, McKenna Schaefbauer (6-3, 6-3)
April 23 vs. Northwestern - No. 6 singles, Kasia Treiber (6-3, 6-2)

RANKING NOTES

Team (1-75)

• 7 – [7] Virginia (20-5)
• 30 – Arizona (19-10)
• 38 – Illinois (14-12)
• NR – FDU (11-7)

Doubles (1-90)

• No. 3 - Chervinsky/Collard (Virginia)
• No. 41 - Genis Salas/Xu (Virginia)
• No. 48 - Tuhten/Usereau (Arizona)
• No. 83 - Kida Ferrari/Megan Heuser

Singles (1-125)

• No. 23 - Elaine Chervinsky (Virignia)
• No. 27 - Sara Ziodato (Virginia)
• No. 34 - Annabelle Xu (Virginia)
• No. 80 - Josie Usereau (Arizona)
• No. 102 - Midori Castillo (Arizona)

NEXT UP

The first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament will be played across 16 host sites from May 2-4, followed by super regionals featuring the 16 advancing teams from May 9-11. The final rounds, consisting of the final eight teams, will be played from May 15-18 at Baylor's Hurd Tennis Center in Waco, Texas.