It was a weekend of tough matchups for the Illini, as they traveled to Oklahoma for ITA Kickoff Weekend to take on two top 25 teams: No. 19 California and No. 23 UCF. The lineup saw some changes after lackluster performances the weekend before, most notably in doubles, and with senior Kate Duong out with an injury.
“Just not seeing production at all three spots the previous weekend in North Carolina,” said head coach Evan Clark. “We’re early in the year, and we’re still trying to figure things out.”
The weekend started off against California, and Illinois was outmatched right from the start. California quickly snatched the doubles point with a dominant 6-0 win at No.1 doubles and 6-2 victory at No. 2 doubles. Unfortunately for the Illini, the story stayed the same in singles. California claimed three straight set victories at No. 3, No. 4 and No. 6 singles to shutout Illinois (4-0).
The next day, the Illini faced the Knights, who are another highly ranked team. For the second day in a row, the Illini dropped the doubles point, with losses at No. 1 and No. 2 doubles. However, the team did snag a win at the No. 3 spot, with junior Megan Heuser and freshman Alice Xu winning 6-2 against their UCF opponents. This weekend, Xu played her first matches since the team’s matchup against Eastern Illinois earlier this season, and she relished the opportunity to gain important match experience with her teammates.
“I had so much fun out on the court,” Xu said. “Playing with Megan is always a great experience. I’m really happy with my play. I was a lot less nervous than I thought I’d be out there, so I was able to swing more freely than I expected. We both played really well. I think we meshed really well, and that obviously showed on the court.”
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Despite missing out on the doubles point, the Illini shined in singles. Heuser, sophomore McKenna Schaefbauer and junior Kida Ferrari all won in straight sets. Junior Kasia Treiber secured the fourth singles win for the Illini in three sets, clinching a 4-3 upset for the team over UCF. After splitting the first two sets, Treiber was confident in her ability to secure the third.
“I knew the girl definitely had a harder time when she was down, so I knew that going into the first game was really important,” Treiber said. “I was really confident after I got that first game, and I also saw all my teammates were doing well, and I knew that it might be coming down to my court. So it kind of sparked a little fire in me, and I made sure I kind of locked in and made sure I just made balls and made her play, and it ended up working out for me.”
Clark said that he was happy with his team’s performance, especially after a tough loss the day before.
“I was really pleased,” Clark said. “We lost the doubles point, Kate’s out and we still found a way to win four singles, which I think is really impressive against a top 25 team.”
