Did somebody say “doubles point”? Although the Illini have shown progress in doubles this season, they proved yet again they could be successful without it, making it to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament for the first time since 2003.

Although Illinois (12-10) lost 4-0 to No. 1 Northwestern (25-1) on Saturday, it showed its strength in singles on Friday, defeating No. 34 Ohio State 4-3 in the quarterfinals after losing the doubles point.

“The girls just find a way to win,” Dasso said. “I have been impressed with how they have all stepped up at different times. It’s great because I never know where exactly the points will come from in any given match.”

Dasso said the team showed some progress against the powerful Wildcats over the weekend. In their first meeting on March 30, Illinois was unable to win a set. In singles on Saturday, freshman Marisa Lambropoulos took a set from No. 30 Sam Murray and redshirt freshman Leigh Finnegan won a set against No. 8 Georgia Rose.

“I think that Leigh and (Marisa) have the talent and the potential to hang with those Northwestern girls in the future,” Dasso said. “Northwestern’s dynasty has been set, but that needs to be changed.”

Heading into the match on Friday against the Buckeyes (19-7), the Illini had one thing on their minds – win or their season would most likely be over. Before the match, Dasso gave the team a pep talk.

“I gave them three points to focus on: Stay confident, start strong and compete their tails off,” Dasso said. “When we came out and lost the doubles point, we stayed calm because we knew we had been in that situation before.”

In singles, Illinois dropped its first match on court four. Down 2-0, the Illini fired back three straight wins to take their first lead. After dropping a close match on court six, all eyes were on sophomore Kristina Minor. Down a set and losing 4-0 in the tiebreaker, Minor came back strong to win seven of the next eight points and shift the momentum her way for the third set. In the third set, Minor put her opponent away, clinching the match for the fifth time this season.

“Minor is the type of player that won’t give up on a match,” Dasso said. “She is a power player that has great quickness, which allows her to play defensively as well. She really came up big for us today.”

After defeating the Buckeyes twice this season, the Illini have put themselves into a good position to make the NCAA Championships. At No. 43, Illinois should crack the top 42 when the new rankings come out on Monday. This puts the team right where it wants to be heading into national tournament selections.

“I want to give my girls a ton of credit this year for turning the program around from last season,” Dasso said. “This success has come from their hard work and dedication. They have responded to every challenge I have laid out for them, and now, they are in a good spot to make NCAAs.”