Illinois (15–8, 3–1) looks to end the Northwestern Wildcats’ (14–7, 3–1) four-game win streak at noon on Saturday. Both teams have momentum going into their matchup on multigame win streaks.

The Illini are on a two-game away win streak of their own. Illinois will look to continue its eight-game win streak they hold over Northwestern currently. Sophomore William Mroz spoke about the importance of the upcoming match.

“The whole team took care of business,” Mroz said. “It was very good from all of us. I think we can do the same this week and keep it going for the rest of the season.”

Although history favors the Illini, securing a win against Northwestern will be no easy feat. Northwestern is No. 27 in the nation right now, only four spots behind No. 23 Illinois.

After handily winning on the road versus Purdue and Indiana, the Illini hope to maintain their current run of form for this matchup Saturday. The season hasn’t been a straightforward path, especially for Mroz, but the team has kept pushing and is now seeing the results. Mroz discussed how winning has helped his performance.

“Every win helps my confidence, and it’s been my first real playing season,” Mroz said. “I’ve had a lot of ups and downs, but hopefully, I can close off the rest of the year pretty well. Going into this weekend, I’m pretty confident. I’m just going to go there and play my game and look to win every match.”

Although the team is picking up steam away from home, the team holds close to their dynamic performances at home. After Northwestern, the Illini play their final two home games of the season against Wisconsin and Nebraska. So far in the season, they have lost once at home, and Mroz knows it is crucial to end the home season on a high note.

“It’s going to be pretty crucial,” Mroz said. “Closing out the season strong at home is something that I want to do and I think the team wants to do. We’re going to do our best to close the season out strong at home. I think it’ll be a great experience.”

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