Chambana Sun

The Illinois women's tennis team has secured its place in the NCAA Team Tournament for the 15th time in program history. The Fighting Illini received an at-large bid during the NCAA Tournament Selection Show and will travel to Austin, Texas, to compete against Georgia Tech in the first round. The match is scheduled for Saturday, May 4, at 10 a.m. CT, with the second round set for May 5 at 1 p.m.

Head coach Evan Clark expressed his pride in the team's performance throughout the year. "I'm so proud of this squad as they have battled all year and are very deserving of an NCAA tournament berth," Clark said. "We still feel like our best tennis is ahead of us and we will look to display that this weekend at Texas."

Illinois began their postseason with a victory over Rutgers in the Big Ten Women's Tennis Tournament Second Round, marking their 16th consecutive quarterfinal appearance since 2008. However, their journey ended with a loss in the quarterfinals.

Under Coach Clark's leadership, Illinois has achieved 17 wins this season, ranking third-most under his tenure and tying for the tenth-most in a single season in program history. This marks the seventh time Illinois has made back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances and the fourth time with Clark as head coach.

In NCAA Tournament play, Illinois holds a record of 4-14 and has reached the Round of 32 on four occasions: in 2001, 2003, 2009, and 2018.

The upcoming event will be hosted by No. 9 Texas at the Texas Tennis Center. Historically, Illinois is winless against Georgia Tech with a record of 0-2. Meanwhile, Harvard will compete against host Longhorns in another first-round matchup.

The championships' later stages will take place at Greenwood Tennis Center in Stillwater, Oklahoma from May 17-19 for team events and May 20-25 for singles and doubles finals.