CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois women’s tennis is set for another challenging schedule as the Orange and Blue’s 2023 slate has been announced. The upcoming season features nine home matches for the Illini.
“Our philosophy has always been and will continue to be to play one of the most competitive out of conference schedules in the country,” began Illini head coach Evan Clark. “The 2023 spring schedule will be no different, and I know our team is excited for the tests that comes with it. We feel like this team is well equipped to handle the challenges our schedule presents, and we believe this schedule will put us in the best position to be successful in the Big Ten conference and for the NCAA Tournament.”
Illinois’ spring slate features matches against 12 ranked opponents from the most recent ITA Collegiate Tennis Team Rankings. Those teams, in order by schedule, include No. 72 Kentucky, No. 6 NC State, No. 26 Vanderbilt OR No. 39 Furman, No. 32 Georgia Tech, No. 48 Notre Dame, No. 41 Northwestern, No. 47 Arizona, No. 18 Michigan, No. 64 Maryland, No. 45 Wisconsin, No. 57 Minnesota and No. 59 Nebraska. Illinois comes in at No. 53 in the current team poll.
Spring play opens at Kentucky on January 22 before the Orange and Blue head east to Raleigh, N.C., fort he ITA Kickoff Weekend hosted by NC State. Illinois will face the host Wolfpack on January 28 before facing either Vanderbilt or Furman the following day to wrap up January action.
February features six dual matches along with the ITA Women’s National Indoors (Feb. 10-13) and the Blue Gray Classic (Feb. 24-25). Illinois hosts a pair of ACC foes to kick off its home slate as Georgia Tech and Notre Dame visit Atkins Tennis Center on February 3 and 5, respectively. From there, dual action continues with the Braggin’ Rights matchup at Missouri on February 10 before returning home to host Illinois State on February 12. Illinois will host Xavier (Feb. 17) and Penn State (Feb. 19) before heading to the Blue Gray Classic in Montgomery, Ala., to close the month.
Illinois heads to Northwestern for another Big Ten tilt on March 10 before spending spring break in Arizona. The Illini will play at Arizona on March 14, facing both the Wildcats followed by New Mexico State in a neutral matchup. After nearly a two-week break, UI will be back in action at Purdue on March…
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