The UIC men's tennis team will have two opportunities in one day to earn its first victory of the season.  The Flames will face Chicago State and Eastern Illinois in a split doubleheader Saturday.

The match against city rival Chicago State is up first at 1:00 pm at H-F Racquet Club in a home match for the Cougars.  Later, the Flames will head to Hinsdale Racquet Club to face the Panthers at 6:00.

Service

• The Flames are coming off a two match in two days stretch last weekend that saw them fall to Southern Utah on Friday and to Illinois State on Sunday.
• UIC's #1 doubles team, Marcelo Dib and Niko Wasilewicz, was a bright spot.  The pair won both of their sets on the weekend and earned Horizon League Doubles Team of the Week for the second time.

Return

• Wasilewicz has anchored the #1 singles spot all season.  Dib and Johan Hedstrom have alternated on the #2 and #3 courts.
• Marco Nanni has played four of the team's five matches in the #4 flight.
• Kailash Panchapakesan and William Wale have been the most frequent players at #5 and #6, with Alvaro de la Fuente, Piotr Lada, and Marco Nanni making spot starts.

Winner

• Hedstrom owns the team's lone singles win this season, a three set win over Davidson on February 10.
• Dib and Wasilewicz are 3-2 in dual match doubles play.
• The #2 and #3 doubles teams have been shuffled in recent matches.  Hedstrom and Wale came together to post a win at #2 against Southern Utah last week.

Last Time Out

• UIC won the doubles point against Southern Utah on Friday.  Hedstrom and Wale finished first with a win, and Dib and Wasilewicz won a 6-3 set after the Thunderbirds won at #3.
• Hedstrom and Wale each forced a tiebreaker in their second singles set, but both ended up on the short end of the extra points.
• Panchapakesan was in the lead at #5 singles when his match was called.
• Dib and Wasilewicz forced a winner-take-all set for the doubles point against Illinois State Saturday.  In the third and final set, Hedstrom and Wale battled but lost, 6-4.
• Dib and Panchapakesan each won their first singles set, only to ultimately lose in a tiebreaker.

Scouting the Opposition

• Chicago State is 3-6 in dual play this year.
• The Cougars split a doubleheader with Southern Utah and Prairie State last weekend.  They will play IUPUI on Friday.
• Christan Gonzalez and Felix Savard won two doubles matches in the doubleheader, and Gonzalez won two singles matches as well.
• Eastern Illinois was also a victim of Southern Utah last weekend.  The loss snapped a two match winning streak.
• Freddie O'Brien is 7-2 at #1 singles.  O'Brien and Trent Reiman comprise the Panthers' #1, and most successful, doubles team.
• UIC defeated both CSU and EIU last season by identical 5-2 scores.