CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The Fighting Illini women's swimming and diving team will hit the road for the first time this season, as the Orange and Blue travel to East Lansing, Michigan, to take on Michigan State. Meet competition is set to begin at 4 p.m. on Friday, October 20.

"I expect this to be a tough meet," head coach Sue Novitsky said. "On paper, we match up very close in a number of events. We will definitely have to take advantage of the events that we have an advantage in and minimize damage in other events. This will be a great opportunity for us to compete in a strong head-to-head meet."

The Illini enter Friday's meet after defeating Indiana State 188-111 at home a week ago. Illinois dominated the meet throughout, earning top times in 12 of the 14 swimming events, as well as posting the top scores in both 1-meter and 3-meter diving.

UI holds an all-time record of 17-9 against the Spartans, dating back to the programs first meeting during the 1976-77 season. The Illini have dominated the series recently, winning each of the last nine meetings between the two schools.

"As a team, we need to continue to work on the details in races," Novitsky said. "We have been working on our underwater kick coming off the walls and turns in practice, so it will be good to gauge the team's improvement. In addition, we need to take advantage of our depth and score three individuals in more individual events than last week."

SCOUTING MSU

The Spartans head to Champaign with a 1-3 record on the season. MSU began the season with a tri-meet against Iowa and Northern Iowa, losing to the Hawkeyes (189-109) and defeating UNI (195-105). The team also lost to both Notre Dame (139.5-27.5) and Texas A&M (141-26) a week ago.

NEXT UP

Following Friday's meet, the Illini will be back in the pool on Friday, October 27, as the team welcomes both Rutgers and Northwestern to the ARC Pool. Meet competition is set for 3 p.m.

FOLLOW THE ILLINI

Stay tuned to FIGHTINGILLINI.com for all the latest information on Fighting Illini Swimming and Diving. Follow the Orange and Blue on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for even more coverage.