The last time Washington hosted the Intercollegiate Tennis Association National Men’s Indoor Team Championships, Illinois won. The team hopes history repeats itself this weekend in Seattle.

The Illini begin their bid for their third tournament title in four years Friday when they take on Arkansas.

“Arkansas is very good, but we’re not scared of anybody,” Illinois head coach Brad Dancer said. “We’ll be fired up and ready to go.”

When it took the championship in 2003, Illinois became the first team outside the Pac-10 conference to win the title since 1987.

The Illini won the Big Ten regular season and tournament titles in 2003, as well as the NCAA team, singles and doubles titles.

“It’s a good feeling, knowing that the last time that we were in Seattle we won the tournament,” senior Pramod Dabir said.

Senior Ryler DeHeart, junior GD Jones and Dabir are the only men on Illinois’ current roster who have been National Men’s Indoor Team Champions. Dabir said he is looking forward to a chance to lead this year’s squad at the tournament and said that he expects that the seniors’ previous experiences at the event will be crucial.

“Just having been there before and knowing what to expect is important,” Dabir said. “We are just going to pass those experiences on to the younger guys.”

For the Illini to win the tournament, they will have to knock off some tough competition. Last year’s champion Baylor will try to defend its title. Last year’s runner-up Virginia, the top-ranked team at the beginning of the season, will also be in attendence at the tournament. No.1 Florida and No.2 Georgia will also be in the hunt for the title.

The team has had time to rest and recooperate after several intense matches last week, including a doubleheader Saturday, Dancer said. He expects the team will come out fresh for its first match. Illinois, however, is not looking past the match against the Razorbacks.

Arkansas, the No. 46-ranked team in the country, has several top singles players who could put a scare into the Illini. Among them is freshman Blake Strode, the top-ranked singles player on the team. He is the No. 19 player in the nation. Senior Matt Roberts is the No. 24 player in the nation.

Regardless of their results in the first-round match, the Illini will play a second match. The Illini will play either Virginia or Washington in the second round of the tournament. Illinois beat Virginia when the teams clashed less than a month ago.

Illinois freshman Marc Spicijaric said the Illini are not intimidated by their competition. Instead, he said, the team is ready to be tested.

“You have to beat the best to be the best,” Spicijaric said. “And, I think we’re the best team in the country.”

Illinois is currently undefeated. This tournament, the men say, will help them determine where the team stands compared to the rest of the nation. The Illini are confident in their ability to compete with the rest of the nation, Spicijaric said.

“It’s always good to have a streak going,” Spicijaric said. “I definitely think that if we win this tournament, we will be the No. 1 team in the country, which we’d deserve to be.”