Badgers turn to Big Ten action at Illinois

MADISON, Wis. – Wisconsin women’s tennis turns its focus to conference action this weekend, opening Big Ten play on the road against Illinois on Feb. 20 at 5 p.m. CT. 

1. The Last Time Out 

Wisconsin closed out its Arkansas road trip with back-to-back wins, opening the weekend with a 4-1 victory over Arkansas before sweeping Kansas, 4-0. Maria Sholokhova delivered one of the weekend’s biggest moments with a ranked upset over No. 22 Carolina Gomez Alonso, setting the tone early for the Badgers. Wisconsin followed with a strong showing against Kansas, where Parker Christensen sealed the team victory at No. 6 singles with a straight-set win to complete the weekend sweep. 

2. Scouting the Illini 

Illinois enters the matchup with a 3-5 record, coming off a 4-3 road win at Iowa State. The Illini dropped the doubles point but rallied in singles, powered by wins across the No. 4 to No. 6 singles spots, with Tess Bucher, Cara Mester, and Lizzie Isyanov securing key victories and Isyanov clinching the match in three sets.

3. Matchup by the Numbers 

Wisconsin holds a 29-24 advantage in the all-time series against Illinois. The Badgers’ most recent win came last season, when they defeated the Illini at home, 4-1.

4. Projected Lineups 

Doubles 

No. 1 – Maria Sholokhova and Lucie Urbanova 

No. 2 – Ekaterina Ivanova and Ellison Reynoldson 

No. 3 – Tianna Rangan and Kaede Usui 

Singles 

No. 1 – Maria Sholokhova

No. 2 – Ekaterina Ivanova

No. 3 – Tianna Rangan 

No. 4 – Ellison Reynoldson 

No. 5 – Kaja Jacobson

No. 6 – Kaede Usui 

5. Up Next 

Wisconsin returns to Nielsen Tennis Stadium for a West Coast weekend, hosting UCLA on Friday, March 6, before facing USC on Sunday, March 8, at 12 p.m.