CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - The Fighting Illini men's tennis team suffered its second loss on the season Friday afternoon, as fifth-seeded TCU defeated 12th-seeded Illinois 4-0 in the first round of the ITA National Team Indoor Championship at Boar's Head Sports Club.

"We got outplayed today by TCU.  Anytime that happens with the crew that we have, you have to look at the coaching staff and our preparation," head coach Brad Dancer said. "We clearly could have done things differently. While we won't have a chance to play for a national title, there are still big implications left in this tournament.  It is up to us to have the guys more prepared for tomorrow."

Illinois dropped the doubles point for just the second time this season, falling to the Horned Frogs at the No. 1 and No. 3 positions. Aleks Vukic and Aron Hiltzik improved to 5-1 on the season with a victory (6-3) over Stalder/Blake on court two. The opening point came down to the match on court one, where Alex Jesse and Jared Hiltzik fell 7-6 to Norrie/Johnson.

Illinois suffered a slow start in singles, taking losses at the No. 2, No. 5 and No. 6 positions. Pengxuan Jiang dropped a 6-2, 6-2 contest to Jerry Lopez on court five. Asher Hirsch fell 6-3, 6-2 to Trevor Johnson at the No. 6 position.

TCU clinched the match at the No. 2 spot, as No. 10 Jared Hiltzik lost his first singles match of the dual season with a 6-4, 6-2 decision to No. 122 Alex Rybakov. The loss marked the first time this season that Illinois has lost at the No. 1 or No. 2 position.

The remaining matches were abandoned after TCU clinched the match.

The Illini now will compete in the consolation draw starting tomorrow with a matchup against South Florida at 2:30 p.m. CT.

#2 TCU 4, #12 Illinois 0

Singles competition

1. #6 Cameron Norrie (TCU) vs. #12 Aleks Vukic (ILL) 6-4, 1-6, 1-0

2. #122 Alex Rybakov (TCU) def. #10 Jared Hiltzik (ILL) 6-4, 6-2

3. #38 Guillermo Nuñez (TCU) vs. #69 Aron Hiltzik (ILL) 7-6, 2-2

4. Eduardo Nava (TCU) vs. Julian Childers (ILL) 7-6, 1-1

5. Jerry Lopez (TCU) def. Pengxuan Jiang (ILL) 6-2, 6-2

6. Trevor Johnson (TCU) def. Asher Hirsch (ILL) 6-3, 6-2

 Doubles competition

1. Cameron Norrie/Trevor Johnson (TCU) def. Alex Jesse/Jared Hiltzik (ILL) 7-6

2. Aleks Vukic/Aron Hiltzik (ILL) def. Reese Stalder/Hudson Blake (TCU) 6-3

3. Guillermo Nuñez/Alex Rybakov (TCU) def. Julian Childers/Pengxuan Jiang (ILL) 6-0

Match Notes:

Illinois 4-2; National ranking #12

TCU 4-1; National ranking #2

Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (5,6,2)

First Round