Women's Tennis Set to Face DePaul

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Fighting Illini women's tennis team will host DePaul on Monday, Feb. 2 at Atkins Tennis Center for Illinois' fourth match of the spring slate. The match will kick off at 12 p.m. CT.

The Illini enter the match at 1-2 in the dual season after sweeping Miami (OH) on Jan. 24. The victory featured no. 1 singles player McKenna Schaefbauer's advancement to 3-0 and freshman Lizzie Isyanov's first dual singles win of her collegiate career. 

Illinois is 3-2 all time vs. DePaul, the most recent meeting occurring in 2016 when the Illini fell, 4-3.

DePaul enters its sixth match of the spring with a 3-2 record after picking up wins over Omaha and Creighton over the weekend in Chicago.

RANKING NOTES

Team (1-75)

• None

Doubles (1-90)

• No. 60 – Alice Xu/Tess Bucher - Illinois

Singles (1-125)

• None

CLINCHES

• Jan. 24 vs. Miami (OH) - #1 McKenna Schaefbauer - 6-3, 6-4

DOUBLES POINTS

• Jan. 24 vs. Miami (OH) - #2 Schaefbauer/Cooper and #3 Mester/Madatali

ILLINI NOTES

• For the first time of her career, Fighting Illini senior McKenna Schaefbauer was named the Big Ten Women's Tennis Player of the Week, the league office announced follow Illinois' opening weekend of play. The Normal, Illinois, native produced a 2-0 opening weekend that saw her earn the highest-ranked win of her career with a victory over the No. 40-ranked player in the country.
• During the preseason, Fighting Illini sophomore Ariel Madatali was named to the 2026 Big Ten Women's Tennis Players to Watch List. The St. Louis native is headed into her second dual season with the Orange and Blue. Madatali is one of 18 athletes named to the Players to Watch List.
• Illinois' 2026 slate features at least 11 matches against squads that appeared in the 2025 NCAA Team Tournament.
• The Fighting Illini faced two ranked opponents during opening weekend and are slated to face at least six teams from the Jan. 7 team top-25 rankings.
• From Feb. 6-10, the Illini will co-host the ITA National Indoor Team Championships with Northwestern. As an event host, Illinois is guaranteed three matches in the event and does not have to qualify through ITA Kickoff Weekend. Besides Illinois and Northwestern, the remaining 14 teams competing will qualify by winning two matches at their respective ITA Kickoff Weekend sites.
• Illinois added a pair of SEC transfers heading into this season. Tess Bucher (Kentucky) and Cara Mester (Oklahoma) both enter their sophomore seasons at Illinois.
• The incoming Fighting Illini class ranked No. 14 nationally by Tennis Recruiting Network. Risa Ueno (No. 14), Lizzie Isyanov (No. 37), and Kimiko Cooper (No. 18) make up the class. Evan Clark has now brought in four top-25 recruiting classes.
• Head coach Evan Clark is in his 11th year as the head coach of Illinois women's tennis, holds an overall dual record of 148-102 (.590), and is 74-36 (.673) in Big Ten play during his time as an Illini. Including his time as the head coach at UNC-Wilmington, Clark owns a 179-113 record overall.
• Illinois has made the NCAA Tournament in three-straight seasons for the first time under Clark and third time in program history. The 2024-25 season's appearance marked the fifth with Clark at the helm.
• Across program history, Illinois has appeared in the NCAA Tournament 16 times and own a 5-16 all-time record.
• Illinois owns an 81-32 record when playing at home under Evan Clark (begins 2016 dual season).

NEXT UP

For the second consecutive season, Illinois will co-host the ITA Indoor Team Championships in the Atkins Tennis Center. As the host, Illinois earns an automatic berth into the high-caliber indoor event. Draws will be announced on Tuesday, Feb. 3. The Fighting Illini are guaranteed at least three matches in the tournament. More information can be found HERE.