The Washington women’s tennis team announced on Mar. 26 that it will host Northwestern and Illinois for two matches this weekend at Montlake. The match against Northwestern is scheduled for Friday at 4 p.m., while the contest with Illinois will take place Sunday at noon.
This event is significant as the Huskies, currently ranked No. 20 in the ITA Team Rankings, hold a strong overall record of 13-1 and are 4-1 in Big Ten play. The team has demonstrated consistent performance across both singles and doubles matches this season.
Friday’s match will feature participation in the Huskies for a Cure initiative, where breast cancer survivors will be honored and players will wear ribbons to raise awareness for all cancers. On Sunday, before facing Illinois, Washington will recognize Trish Bostrom by unveiling a Legacy All-American banner at Nordstrom Tennis Center.
The Huskies have been dominant on their home courts under head coach Robin Stephenson, compiling a record of 111-29 in Seattle since 2015. They have also secured double-digit home wins in four of the last five seasons. In individual accolades, Erika Matsuda recently earned her second Big Ten Player of the Week honor after clinching key doubles points with partner Carina Syrtveit and winning crucial singles matches.
Northwestern enters Friday’s matchup ranked No. 60 with a record of 10-6 overall and features Margot Phanthala (No. 87 in singles) as well as top-ranked doubles teams. Illinois arrives with an 8-7 record; McKenna Schaegbauer is ranked No. 29 in singles while Alice Xu and Tess Bucher are among the top doubles pairs.
Looking ahead, Washington is set to travel to Southern California next week for Top 25 showdowns against USC on April 3 and UCLA on April 5.
