In April 2007, the Illinois women’s tennis team found itself backed into a corner. An early exit in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament put the finishing touches on a 5-17 season and an abysmal 1-9 record in conference play. A mix of inexperience, season-ending injuries and plain old bad luck proved costly for head coach Michelle Dasso and the Illini.

One year removed from finishing as an afterthought on the college tennis scene, the program has since experienced a period of rapid improvement, culminating in a 12-11 record, including 7-3 against Big Ten foes, a No. 36 national ranking and an appearance in this year’s NCAA Tournament before bowing out in the first round.

Among other things, Dasso pointed to unity and confidence as catalysts for the team’s strides.

“We played teams a little more on our level and broke into the rankings and then started to believe,” Dasso said. “In the beginning of the year, and of course over last year, you just get beat up and lose a lot of confidence, and I think that was the difference-maker this year.”

Reaching the postseason was no easy task. Sitting at No. 43 heading into the Big Ten Tournament, the Illini needed to move up a single spot to receive an automatic bid to the NCAAs, which are handed out to the top 42 teams in the country. A first-round upset of No. 35 Ohio State sealed the Illini’s fate and vaulted them into the tourney for the first time since the 2003-04 season.

While the win against the Buckeyes was integral to Illinois’ success, Dasso noticed signs of her team’s improvement months before the conference tournament.

“I would say the DePaul-Kansas weekend was really huge for us back in the early part, or mid-part of the season when we started our Big Ten season,” Dasso said. “We really kind of came together and that was a huge weekend for us. And I think that weekend alone got us believing, and we kind of realized, ‘Hey, we can do this,’ so it turned it around.”

A loss to No. 25 Tennessee in the NCAA Tournament’s first round ended Illinois’ surprising run, but the program’s resurgence has set the tone for next season, when expectations will be higher than ever.

While the team bid farewell to graduates Alejandra Meza Cuadra and Momei Qu this spring, juniors Megan Fudge Kristina Minor are set to return, forming a strong core of upperclassmen that Dasso said she has been lacking since she took over two years ago. Add in redshirt sophomore Leigh Finnegan, who has a full season under her belt after missing the 2007 season with a foot injury, and there is certainly reason for optimism heading into 2008-09.

Dasso foresees a marked improvement, dictated by expectations that would have seemed unreasonable for the Illini squad of a year ago.

“Obviously when we get back to the tournament, we want to win a round,” Dasso said. “Our goal is to be ranked top 25. We think it’s possible, but it’s tough once you get up to that area to be top 25, you’re a legit team.

“Everyone’s just gained a lot of experience this year, and we’ll have more depth.”