After more than a month on the road, the Illini will be returning home to Atkins Tennis Center to try and keep their win streak alive. The theme of the weekend seems to be Michigan, as Illinois will face off against two Big Ten rivals, Michigan State and No.5 Michigan on Friday and Sunday respectively.

Having the home court advantage for the first time in over a month will be huge for the Illini. In the spring season, Illinois has only hosted five times out of their 16 games and has gone 3-2 in those matches. The team has also gone undefeated in their three previous conference matches, a feat that hasn’t been done by the program since the 2007-2008 season. Illinois will be aiming to extend that streak to 5-0 by the end of the weekend. In order to do that, Illinois will most likely be relying on the consistently effective duo of junior Kate Duong and sophomore Meghan Heuser who’ve had a stellar 6-8 record in doubles since the last time the Illini were home. The doubles point will be an important one for both matches and Illinois will be in a good position to pick that point up in both matches to set up a lead.

The easiest match of the weekend on paper will be Michigan State on Friday. The Spartans will be coming off a loss to Wisconsin and have dropped five of their last eight matches. They’ve particularly struggled in conference match-offs with a 1-4 record against fellow Big Ten teams. Michigan State is sitting at an 8-8 record, and despite their lackluster results against other conference rivals, the Spartans will be eager to get back in the win column. This eagerness may cause the match against the Spartans to be more difficult of a match than expected, and the Illini should look to crush any momentum for Michigan State as soon as possible.

No matter the results on Friday, the Illini will find themselves facing off against the No. 5 nationally ranked Wolverines. Michigan is fresh off a 4-0 trouncing of Minnesota and will be stopping at Northwestern on Saturday night before heading down to Atkins Tennis Center. The Wolverines have won eight out of their last 10 games and have a perfect 5-0 conference record. Those two losses came from other ranked teams, however, with both being lower ranked than Michigan. With Illinois being ranked at No. 34, the Illini will be looking to keep that trend going. Illinois will have to keep up with Michigan throughout the matches on Sunday and keep control of the sets. Despite the challenge Michigan will provide, head coach Evan Clark has stated in the past that the team thrives on being the underdog, and the match Sunday should be no exception.

This weekend will be a good opportunity for the Illini to come back and play at home. The matches against Michigan State and Michigan will provide the team with another opportunity to hone their game and walk away with two more points leading into the final month of the season.

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