The Illini are becoming a serious threat in the Big Ten, as they are now 3-1 in conference play after going .500 on the weekend in front of eager Illinois fans.

Saturday, the Illini took it to the Badgers, winning 6-1. On Sunday, the No. 1 Wildcats ran away with the victory, 7-0. However, Illinois did not go down without a fight.

“I was honestly very, very proud of our girls today,” head coach Michelle Dasso said. “It’s the happiest I have ever been for losing. We may have lost 7-0, but every court was a battle. We are not far off from the No. 1 team in the nation. We are learning that if we keep working hard we will be right there.”

Some of their hard work has been put toward trying to build three solid doubles tandems that can win consistently. Dasso said sophomore Megan Fudge and junior Shivani Dave have shown they can be a winning duo. They are 2-1 so far this season on court one.

“We work well together,” Dave said. “We both complement each other pretty well. The most important thing with your doubles partner is to enjoy each other, otherwise you won’t play well.”

The team had a strong singles performance on Saturday against Wisconsin (7-9), sweeping all six matches.

On Sunday, the players worked until the very end, though they came up empty handed. With the dual against Northwestern (17-1) already sealed at 4-0, the Illini refused to let up on the three remaining singles courts.

“It was so great to see them (fight),” Dasso said. “They could have easily thrown in the towel. They battled, and that’s how you get better.”

Sophomore Kristina Minor, who teamed with freshman Annie McCarthy, tweaked her ankle in doubles. Minor came back out to play singles, but fell 3-6, 3-6 to the Wildcats’ Suzie Matzenauer.

The Illini (7-7) played at home for the first time since Feb. 8, and the fans welcomed them back. Attendance was estimated at 162 on Saturday and 133 on Sunday.

Those numbers included members of Aces, the women’s tennis student section. Atkins Tennis Center offered a free barbeque to all in attendance and free wristbands for the first 50 fans. The team was grateful for the high turnout.

“I want to give a special thanks to everyone that came out here this weekend,” Dasso said.

“It makes Illinois a special place to play and it really helps the girls out.”

The Illini will return to the road Friday for a match against Michigan (9-4) that will begin at 6 p.m.