CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – No. 35-ranked Illinois women’s tennis (18-9) has punched its ticket to the NCAA Tournament, and will open the First Round against Florida State (16-10). The Illini will play the Seminoles on Friday, May 5, at 9 a.m. CT, at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex in Athens, Georgia. The winner of the match will play against the winner of Florida A&M and fourth-seeded No. 3 Georgia on May 6, at 3 p.m. CT.
This marks the first time the Fighting Illini have qualified for the NCAA Tournament since 2019 and the 14th time overall. Evan Clark has now led the squad to three berths across seven seasons at the helm.
Illinois holds a 4-13 all-time record in the NCAA Tournament, reaching the Round of 32/Second Round on four occasions (2001, 2003, 2009, 2018).
Following the Big Ten Tournament, three Illini owned 17 wins in singles play including Ashley Yeah (17-13), Kasia Treiber (17-12) and Megan Heuser (17-9).
On the doubles courts, Heuser and Duong (24-5) have secured an at-large bid to the NCAA Doubles Championship, which will begin on Monday, May 22 from Orlando, Fla.
Awards Season
Several Illini players have earned postseason recognition via various honors. Most recently, Megan Heuser was selected to the Big Ten All-Tournament Team. Prior to that, Kate Duong and Ashley Yeah earned Big Ten All-Conference nods while Kasia Treiber was recognized as a Big Ten Sportsmanship honoree.
Last Time Out
Illinois secured a 4-2 win against six-seed Iowa in the Big Ten Tournament before falling to No. 2-seeded Ohio State 4-0 in the Illini’s first semifinal appearance since 2019.
Illini vs. The Field
Illinois is 3-6 against Florida State all-time. Their last meeting came in 2018 with a 4-0 Illinois win over the Seminoles.
Illinois is 0-2 against Georgia all-time. Their last matchup was a 4-0 win for No. 6 Georgia over the Illini on January 29, 2017.
Illinois has never faced Florida A&M.
Illini Notes
Head coach Evan Clark is in his eighth year as the head coach of Illinois women’s tennis and holds an overall dual record of 115-76 (.602) and is 58-28 (.674) in Big Ten play during his time as an Illini.
The Illini are coming off a 16-9…
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