Northwestern University Athletics
Saturday, April 18
Urbana-Champaign, Ill.
12 p.m. CT
Northwestern
at
Illinois
Photo by: Mary Grace Grabill/Northwestern Athletics
Men's Tennis Wraps Up Regular Season at Illinois
4/17/2026 7:20:00 PM | Men's Tennis
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — No. 66-ranked Northwestern closes out the regular season on the road against No. 15 Illinois on Saturday, April 18, at noon CT.
This past weekend, the Wildcats (15-12, 3-9 Big Ten) fell to No. 28 USC and No. 24 UCLA. Northwestern pulled out one match in Los Angeles, as senior Chad Miller and junior Greyson Casey notched a 6-0 singles victory at the No. 2 doubles slot against the Trojans. First-year Jacob Golden made his dual season debut by playing at No. 6 singles against USC.
Northwestern's 15 wins are the fifth-most in the conference and exceed their totals from the 2023 (10) and 2024 (12) dual seasons. From Jan. 18-Feb. 14, Northwestern held a nine-match winning streak, the program's longest streak since winning nine straight to open the 2017 dual season. The Wildcats also have nine sweeps this season, their most in a campaign since 2023 (9).
Casey and sophomore Carter Pate are the ITA's No. 18-ranked doubles team in the nation, as they boast an unblemished 17-0 record. They are Northwestern's highest-ranked doubles team since April 21, 2021 (Simen Bratholm and Nick Brookes, No. 17). The third-ranked doubles pairing in the Big Ten, Pate and Casey's 17 wins are the most by a Wildcat duo since Strong Kirchheimer and Dominik Stary won 19 in the 2016-17 season. Pate and Casey are one win away from tying Danny Weiss and Martin Hampe (1984-85) for the 10th most wins by a doubles team in program history. They also currently hold the program's single-season record for win percentage by a doubles team, breaking the record set by Chris Gregersen and Todd Martin in 1988-89 (.929).
Pate, who has competed at the No. 1 slot in both singles and doubles in the majority of his matches, is tied for the most singles wins on the team with 14 (14-8) and leads the team in doubles wins with 18 (18-1). Pate's 32 total wins lead the team and are the most by a Wildcat since Steven Forman had 32 in the 2022 dual season. Pate has 10 wins at No. 1 singles, the most by a Northwestern player at the No. 1 singles spot since the 2023 dual season, when Forman tallied 11 (11-4).
Ethan Schiffman — a transfer from Cal — is tied with Pate for the most singles wins on the team (14). Primarily playing at No. 4 singles, Schiffman has a 14-6 record, as his 70.0 win percentage in singles is the best on the team (min. 10 singles matches). Furthermore, Schiffman has tallied the second-most wins on the team with 28, as he has a 14-8 doubles record. He has a team-best five singles wins in Big Ten play.
Junior Cyrus Mahjoob ranks third on the team with 11 singles victories, having taken down two nationally ranked players. He has three singles wins in conference play, tied for the second most on the team. The Georgia transfer has played nearly all of his doubles with Schiffman, and together, they have a 12-8 record, typically appearing at the No. 2 doubles position.
Casey holds a 19-1 record in doubles. He has 25 total wins on the season, as he has six singles wins, playing primarily at the No. 3 slot. His 19 doubles wins are the most by a Wildcat this decade.
First-year Cooper Han has enjoyed a fruitful start to his college career. Competing in the bottom third of the singles lineup, Han has a 9-6 singles record, as well as a 5-3 doubles record. His nine singles wins are the most by a Northwestern first-year since Presley Thieneman in the 2021 dual season (12).
The Wildcats are seeking their first win over the Fighting Illini (20-6, 9-3 Big Ten) on the road in the 21st century. Northwestern last defeated Illinois in the 2023 dual season, a 4-3 win at home. The Wildcats are seeking their first top 25 victory since Feb. 4, 2024, when they took down No. 8 Duke inside Combe Tennis Center. Northwestern last had a top 25 win on the road on Feb. 5, 2023, defeating No. 25 Duke. Illinois, which has the third-best record in the conference, comes off a weekend in which it defeated USC before falling to UCLA. The Fighting Illini have three nationally ranked singles players: No. 17 Kenta Miyoshi, No. 23 Gabriel Debru, and No. 103 William Mroz. Illinois also has three doubles teams that are ranked.
Following the conclusion of the regular season, the Big Ten Tournament will take place from April 22-25 in Ojai, Calif. The top 10 teams from the conference qualify.
This past weekend, the Wildcats (15-12, 3-9 Big Ten) fell to No. 28 USC and No. 24 UCLA. Northwestern pulled out one match in Los Angeles, as senior Chad Miller and junior Greyson Casey notched a 6-0 singles victory at the No. 2 doubles slot against the Trojans. First-year Jacob Golden made his dual season debut by playing at No. 6 singles against USC.
Northwestern's 15 wins are the fifth-most in the conference and exceed their totals from the 2023 (10) and 2024 (12) dual seasons. From Jan. 18-Feb. 14, Northwestern held a nine-match winning streak, the program's longest streak since winning nine straight to open the 2017 dual season. The Wildcats also have nine sweeps this season, their most in a campaign since 2023 (9).
Casey and sophomore Carter Pate are the ITA's No. 18-ranked doubles team in the nation, as they boast an unblemished 17-0 record. They are Northwestern's highest-ranked doubles team since April 21, 2021 (Simen Bratholm and Nick Brookes, No. 17). The third-ranked doubles pairing in the Big Ten, Pate and Casey's 17 wins are the most by a Wildcat duo since Strong Kirchheimer and Dominik Stary won 19 in the 2016-17 season. Pate and Casey are one win away from tying Danny Weiss and Martin Hampe (1984-85) for the 10th most wins by a doubles team in program history. They also currently hold the program's single-season record for win percentage by a doubles team, breaking the record set by Chris Gregersen and Todd Martin in 1988-89 (.929).
Pate, who has competed at the No. 1 slot in both singles and doubles in the majority of his matches, is tied for the most singles wins on the team with 14 (14-8) and leads the team in doubles wins with 18 (18-1). Pate's 32 total wins lead the team and are the most by a Wildcat since Steven Forman had 32 in the 2022 dual season. Pate has 10 wins at No. 1 singles, the most by a Northwestern player at the No. 1 singles spot since the 2023 dual season, when Forman tallied 11 (11-4).
Ethan Schiffman — a transfer from Cal — is tied with Pate for the most singles wins on the team (14). Primarily playing at No. 4 singles, Schiffman has a 14-6 record, as his 70.0 win percentage in singles is the best on the team (min. 10 singles matches). Furthermore, Schiffman has tallied the second-most wins on the team with 28, as he has a 14-8 doubles record. He has a team-best five singles wins in Big Ten play.
Junior Cyrus Mahjoob ranks third on the team with 11 singles victories, having taken down two nationally ranked players. He has three singles wins in conference play, tied for the second most on the team. The Georgia transfer has played nearly all of his doubles with Schiffman, and together, they have a 12-8 record, typically appearing at the No. 2 doubles position.
Casey holds a 19-1 record in doubles. He has 25 total wins on the season, as he has six singles wins, playing primarily at the No. 3 slot. His 19 doubles wins are the most by a Wildcat this decade.
First-year Cooper Han has enjoyed a fruitful start to his college career. Competing in the bottom third of the singles lineup, Han has a 9-6 singles record, as well as a 5-3 doubles record. His nine singles wins are the most by a Northwestern first-year since Presley Thieneman in the 2021 dual season (12).
The Wildcats are seeking their first win over the Fighting Illini (20-6, 9-3 Big Ten) on the road in the 21st century. Northwestern last defeated Illinois in the 2023 dual season, a 4-3 win at home. The Wildcats are seeking their first top 25 victory since Feb. 4, 2024, when they took down No. 8 Duke inside Combe Tennis Center. Northwestern last had a top 25 win on the road on Feb. 5, 2023, defeating No. 25 Duke. Illinois, which has the third-best record in the conference, comes off a weekend in which it defeated USC before falling to UCLA. The Fighting Illini have three nationally ranked singles players: No. 17 Kenta Miyoshi, No. 23 Gabriel Debru, and No. 103 William Mroz. Illinois also has three doubles teams that are ranked.
Following the conclusion of the regular season, the Big Ten Tournament will take place from April 22-25 in Ojai, Calif. The top 10 teams from the conference qualify.
Players Mentioned
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