After losing to No. 13 Pepperdine on Friday, the Illinois men’s tennis team will look for redemption against No. 10 Stanford.

A victory will not come easily for the Illini, though, especially at the Cardinal’s Taube Tennis Center at 3:30 p.m. CST.

But the Illini are not intimidated by their opponents, despite Stanford’s history of dominance at the collegiate level, said Illinois senior Chris Martin before the team departed for California. The Cardinals have a 9-6 record for the season. However, the Illini have lost only twice this season. They are 12-2.

“They’re a good team, we just have to go out there and focus on the ball,” said Martin, whose older brother David was a two-time All-American at Stanford.

The Cardinal squad features Sam Warburg, one of the top singles and doubles players in the nation. Warburg is No. 2 in the nation in singles and is ranked third in doubles with teammate KC Corkery.

Last season, Warburg joined Corkery to win the NCAA doubles title over Bo Hodge and John Isner of Georgia. The tandem is expected to be in the lineup today as well.

Stanford’s success, however, is not limited to the team’s recent accomplishments. The history behind the program is important to consider as well, Martin said.

The Cardinals have won 17 NCAA team titles. Many of the former Stanford standouts are still competing – and excelling at the professional level as well. Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan, who have been ranked No.1 in the world in doubles, are Stanford alumni. Four-time Stanford All-American Paul Goldstein is currently playing professionally and has been ranked as high as No. 69 in the world in singles.

“They’ve been the gold standard in college tennis,” said Illinois head coach Craig Tiley.

Although the history that surrounds the program is important, Tiley is quick to point out that the success is more remarkable based on the way the program is structured.

The Stanford program recruits young men who are focused on improvement and developing as athletes. Many of the athletes also have aspirations of playing professional tennis after college – much like the men Tiley recruits to his program.

“They are very similar to us,” Tiley said. “It’s going to be a tough match.”

Illinois will also have to bounce back from a rare defeat, while Stanford just snapped a two-match losing streak in its last match out. Stanford is coming off a win over Oregon, after being swept by Baylor 7-0 and being upset 5-2 by No. 19 Washington.

Still, the Illini coaches are not worried about their team’s ability to rebound after their defeat.

“We’ll bounce back,” said Illinois associate head coach Brad Dancer.