Illinois women’s tennis wrapped up the ITA Kickoff Weekend in Tallahassee on Sunday. Going into Florida on a three-match winning streak, the Illini were not lacking in confidence, but they faced very tough opponents in No. 18 Florida State and Florida International. Despite putting up strong fights, Illinois suffered two losses and will look to bounce back next Sunday.

Saturday saw the Illini come up against the ranked Seminoles. One of the doubles matches and one of the singles matches was automatically defaulted to Illinois, as Florida State was only competing with five players.

The Illini were swept in the other two doubles matches, however, as the team of freshman Megan Heuser and sophomore Kate Duong lost, 6-4, and the team of juniors Ashley Yeah and Josie Frazier lost, 6-2, and the Seminoles took a 1-0 lead via the doubles-point victory.

In singles play, Duong, Heuser and freshman Kasia Treiber all suffered defeat against very strong FSU players. Treiber showed her grit and managed to force a third set but was unable to claim victory, falling, 5-7, 6-4, 3-6.

The Illini fought back and put two more points on the board thanks to hard-fought wins by Ashley Yeah, who won 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-0, and Josie Frazier, who battled out a 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory.

In spite of the spirited efforts from the team, Illinois fell just short of a comeback upset against No. 18 Florida State. The Seminoles took the 4-3 win over the Illini.

“I am so proud of the gutsy performance by our team today,” said head coach Evan Clark via a team statement. “It was a heartbreaker for sure, but credit to Florida State for being better down the stretch. We will learn a ton from this experience and will better from it. Great teams bounce back quickly, and that’s what we will look to do tomorrow.”

Unfortunately, Sunday proved to be another tough day for Illinois as it took on Florida International in its last match of the ITA Kickoff Weekend.

Things started out positively for the Illini, as they took the point in doubles play. Although the team of Treiber/junior Emily Casati fell 6-1, Heuser/Duong and Yeah/Frazier both won their matches by 7-5 scorelines.

Things fell apart for the Illini in singles play, as the Panthers won four of the matches to claim the overall victory. Duong, Yeah, Frazier and freshman Kida Ferrari all lost in singles action, and Megan Heuser, despite forcing a third set against her opponent, did not finish once the match was called.

A bright spot for Illinois was senior Shivani Ingle, who won her second singles match of the season by a score of 6-2, 6-2. Despite the additional point on the board, Illinois closed out the event with a 4-2 loss to Florida International. 

Illinois (4-3) will be back in action at Atkins on Sunday to take on Illinois State. This exciting matchup against the in-state rival Redbirds gives the Illini a chance to get back on track following the difficult ITA Kickoff Weekend.

It will be another strong opponent for the Illini, as the Redbirds currently sit with a 4-1 record. Illinois has demonstrated thus far that it isn’t to be messed with on home turf, as it will be looking to win its fourth consecutive home match of the season.

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