EAST LANSING, Mich. – No. 75 Michigan State women’s tennis travels to Illinois for the weekend to face a set of Big Ten Conference opponents in the Land of Lincoln State. The Spartans face No. 59 Northwestern on Saturday, April 4 at 1 p.m. ET, at NU’s Combe Tennis Center in Evanston, Ill., before No. 54 Illinois on Sunday, April 5  at 12 p.m. ET at UI’s Atkins Tennis Center in Urbana-Champaign, Ill.

The pair of matches serve as the Green & White’s final conference matches on the road, with the three remaining matches taking place in East Lansing, Mich. 

MSU has earned a 9-9 overall record and a 2-6 B1G record throughout a difficult season schedule. 

Sophomore Ellie Blackford and senior Matilde Morais moved up in ITA doubles rankings, slotted at No. 43 as of this week’s rankings, announced on Tuesday.

Scouting Northwestern 

Northwestern has had a strong season so far, slating a 11-4 overall record and a 4-3 B1G record. 

Most recently, the Wildcats upset No. 53 Oregon in a narrow 4-3 victory at Oregon’s home courts. 

NU fell to Iowa early in their conference season, dropping a slim 3-4 defeat. 

The Wildcats are currently ranked at No. 59, with just Margot Panthala ranked at No. 89 in singles. 

Series History vs. Northwestern 

Northwestern has held a strong record against the Spartans over the past twenty-six seasons, with MSU holding a 2-21 record against the Wildcats since the 2002 season. 

During the previous dual match season, the Green & White upset Northwestern in East Lansing 4-2, downing the No. 44-ranked Wildcats. 

MSU hosted NU during the fall tournament season, with the Wildcats partaking in the Spartan Invite presented by Auto-Owners’ Insurance. 

Scouting Illinois

The Fighting Illini are similar to the Spartans in that they’ve both had a hard-fought, difficult schedule, facing multiple tough opponents. Ultimately, Illinois has been able to earn a 9-8 overall record.

Moving to B1G action, Illinois has been able to fight to a 5-2 conference record, falling only to No. 35 Wisconsin and No. 45 Iowa. 

Illinois will face Michigan on Saturday, April 4, at home before facing the Spartans. 

Series History vs. Illinois 

Michigan State faced Illinois at home during the 2025 season and fell, 4-0. 

The last time MSU beat the Fighting Illini was in 2021, where the Spartans fought to a 4-3 victory in East Lansing. 

Overall, Illinois holds a 21-4 record over MSU, and MSU looks to battle for a victory this weekend. 

Up Next 

Michigan State returns home to commence its final home weekend of the regular-season, with matches against Rutgers on Saturday, April 11, at 12 p.m. and Maryland on Sunday, April 12, at 12 p.m. 

Locations for these matches will be announced at a later date, depending on the weather. 

These matches also serve as the Spartan Senior Celebrations for the MSU women’s tennis graduating class- Sarah Fazlagic, Matilde Morais, Oriana Parkins-Godwin, Issey Purser and Hanna Tsitavets. 

Fans can keep up to date with Michigan State women’s tennis by following them on Instagram, X and Facebook, @msu_wtennis.