"We could not have done this without the crowd today," head coach Brad Dancer said about the win. "The Illini nation was on their feet and in full force and was a huge part of this victory today. All Spicijaric had to do was get back to his basics. Be calm, cool and collected."

With the win, Illinois now faces No. 3-seeded Baylor on Monday, May 21, at 9 a.m. in the first semifinal of the day.

Heading into the day, Ohio State had never advanced into the semifinals in the history of its program and Illinois kept that fact true today with its spirited win. Prior to today's win, the Buckeyes were 30-0 when winning the doubles point and had lost only once all season long, that coming at the hands of No. 1-ranked Georgia, 4-0, at the USTA/ITA Men's National Team Indoor Championships in mid-February.

With the win, Illinois snapped a four-match losing streak to the Buckeyes, dating back to April 2, 2006, and a two-match losing streak in the postseason, as the Illini had previously lost to Ohio State twice in the Big Ten Tournament finals (2006-07). The victory also snapped OSU's 20-match winning streak, while the Illini extended their's to four.

"We know that we still have work to do," Spicijaric said after the win. "We didn't come to Georgia to just be in the semifinals, we came to win a championship. I can assure anyone that no team in the country has worked or prepared as much as we have heading into this weekend. We now we have to get focused and ready for Baylor on Monday."

The win is the highest ranked opponent the Illini have defeated this season, the previous being No. 8 Duke and Florida.

"I told the guys before today that we could beat these guys," Dancer said. "I told them that this was their day, and to go out and take it. Our guys believe in themselves because of their preparation. Ohio State is an unbelievable team and they raised the bar for us. We knew we had to work hard to match them."

Illinois moves into the semifinals for only the third time in program history, last making it in 2004 and before that in 2003 when it won the title. After the 4-2 triumph, Illinois improved to 3-3 in the quarterfinals, and for the third straight match, has come from behind to win. Its first victory came against No. 21 Michigan (4-2), followed by No. 7 Mississippi (4-3) and then No. 2 Ohio State (4-3).

Since hosting the NCAA first and second rounds, Illinois has been on a tear as of late on defying odds. Michigan had lost only once after winning the doubles point all year before the Illini upset, Ole Miss was 20-0 (100-4 since 2002) on the season when winning the doubles point before the loss, while Ohio State was 30-0 before today's setback.

Illinois looks to continue that defiance as it heads into the semifinals as one of the lowest seeds in the draw, as No. 12 USC looks to join the Fighting Illini later today when they face No. 4 Virginia.

Illinois becomes the third 10-seed to make the Final Four, with the last being Tennessee in 2000. Georgia, in 1999, was the first team to do it in the first year the bracket opened to a 64-team field. Ironically, that year the Bulldogs captured the title after defeating Baylor, Illinois' opponent on Monday, in the quarterfinals before downing Mississippi (4-1) in the semifinals and UCLA (4-3) in the finals. The Cinderella run also came when the championship was hosted in Athens.

MATCH RECAP: TAKING DOWN THE BUCKEYES

The match could not have started out any better for the Illini in doubles, as they quickly secured breaks on all three courts to start the contest. At one's, juniors Kevin Anderson and Ryan Rowe (ILL), ranked eighth, were in full control of the tilt over No. 11 Chris Klingemann and Devin Mullings (OSU) as they secured an insurance break at 7-3.

The momentum seemed to be on the side of the Illini, but it would take two good efforts to claim the doubles point over the No. 2-ranked Buckeyes.

On court two, the Illini pair of juniors Ruben Gonzales and Brandon Davis (ILL) were in control at, 5-4, but Ohio State's Justin Kronauge and Drew Eberly held twice and broke to take an 7-6 lead. On court three, the duos of senior GD Jones and sophomore Marc Spicijaric (ILL) traded breaks for most of the match with Bryan Koniecko and Steven Moneke (OSU), but it was Ohio State who took the ultimate lead at 7-6. Ohio State went on to steal the doubles point after an 8-6 win at No. 2 and an 8-5 win at No. 3.

Down 1-0, Illinois once again looked at tough odds and would have to come back in singles to top the Buckeyes, who were 30-0 this season after winning the doubles point.

Heading into singles, the Illini showed no signs of losing steam, as Anderson (ILL) picked up where he left off from his Big Ten Tournament meeting with Koniecko (OSU), taking the first set 6-2, before cruising in the second 6-1 to garner the Illini's first point of the afternoon. At Big Tens, the Johannesburg, South Africa native cruised past the Ohio State sophomore, 6-2, 6-2.

In the second match to finish, Gonzales (ILL), at No. 4, was in a dogfight against Kronauge (OSU). The Terre Haute, Ind., native found himself in a hole early after being broken and eventually could not recover as he dropped the opener 6-4. Finding his form in the second, the Illini junior rebounded to take the second, 6-3. In the third, "Tuesday" was unstoppable, as he sealed the win behind a 6-2 final set to give Illinois the 2-1 lead.

Finishing third on court six, a fresh face for Illinois in freshman Billy Heiser, who had not played a match in the spring due to ineligibility, was on fire in his first match back against OSU's Eberly. Looking like a lion hungry for his first prey of the spring, the Illini freshman, who went 9-2 in the fall, easily took a set lead (6-2) in the early goings of the contest. A little shaky in the second, Heiser allowed his first-match and freshman jitters settle in, as he dropped the second 7-5 before eventually falling 6-3 in the third. The result knotted the match at 2-all.

At No. 5, Illinois' lone senior, Jones, continued to trade service games with Klingemann (OSU) in the first, as neither player was budging at 4-all on serve. The frame would end up in a tiebreaker, where Jones took an early 6-3 lead before closing out the first set, 7-6(3). In the second, the contest got even tighter, as Jones lost his serve early, but did not panic as he evened the match at 4-all after a solid service break of his own. In championship fashion, the two decided the affair in a tiebreak, where the Illini used his experience to swing past Klingemann (OSU), 7-6(4). Now a point away from victory at 3-2, Illinois would turn its fate to the racquets of Rowe (No. 2) and Spicijaric (No. 3).

On court three, Spicijaric (ILL) took a pivotal break to go up 5-4 and serve for the match in the first, but OSU's Mullings was not going to go quietly as he broke back to send the opening frame to a tiebreak. There, Mullings (OSU) finished up the set, drawing an error from Spicijaric (ILL) to claim the 12-10 exhausting opening frame. In the second, Mullings (OSU) took a 3-0 lead before the set became all Spicijaric's, as he stormed back to take the second, 7-5, and used the momentum to grab a 3-0 lead in the third. In the third, Spicijaric (ILL) worked his tired and sluggish opponent all around the court before sending Mullings (OSU) and the Buckeyes packing for good, winning 6-1 and clinching the match 4-2 for Illinois.

In the only unfinished match of the day on court two, Rowe (ILL) worked from behind in the first, as he handed a break to Moneke (OSU) early in the frame before dropping the opening set, 6-4. From there, the two battled back and forth in the second, while Rowe (ILL) had a chance to serve it out at 5-4, but Moneke (OSU) fought back to force a tiebreak. There, Rowe finished the job, winning 8-6. In the third, Rowe (ILL) fell behind again, but would not let trail long as he broke back and was on serve at 5-4 before it as suspended.

TENNIS MATCH RESULTS

NCAA TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS

QUARTERFINALS

ATHENS, GA.

5/19/07

#10 ILLINOIS def. #2 OHIO STATE, 4-2

Singles Competition

1. #5 Kevin Anderson (ILL) def. #20 Bryan Koniecko (OSU) 6-2, 6-1

2. #22 Ryan Rowe (ILL) vs. #6 Steven Moneke (OSU) 4-6, 7-6 (8-6), 4-5, unfinished

3. Marc Spicijaric (ILL) def. #27 Devin Mullings (OSU) 6-7 (10-12), 7-5, 6-1

4. Ruben Gonzales (ILL) def. Justin Kronauge (OSU) 4-6, 6-3, 6-2

5. GD Jones (ILL) def. Chris Klingemann (OSU) 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-4)

6. Drew Eberly (OSU) def. Billy Heiser (ILL) 2-6, 7-5, 6-3

Order of finish: Singles (1, 4, 6, 5, 3)

Doubles Competition

1. #8 Kevin Anderson/Ryan Rowe (ILL) vs. #11 Chris Klingemann/Devin Mullings (OSU) 3-7, unfinished

2. #48 Drew Eberly/Justin Kronauge (OSU) def. Brandon Davis/Ruben Gonzales (ILL) 8-6

3. Bryan Koniecko/Steven Moneke (OSU) def. GD Jones/Marc Spicijaric (ILL) 8-6

Order of finish: Doubles (2, 3)

BAYLOR PREVIEW

Baylor makes the semifinals for the fourth straight and fourth time overall by way of a 4-0 defeat over the 2007 Cinderella team, No. 27 N.C. State, in the quarterfinals on Saturday.

N.C. State's road to the quarters began with a win over William and Mary (4-0), an upset against No. 6 North Carolina (4-0) in the second round followed by a 4-3 victory over No. 11 Texas in the round of 16 to setup their contest against the Bears. Unfortunately their unbelievable journey came to an end at the hands of the tournament's third-seed, Baylor.

Baylor's trip to the semifinals began with a win over Oral Roberts (4-0), followed by an easy put-away of conference-rival Texas A&M (4-0) in the second round, a 4-0 victory over No. 17 Alabama in the round of 16 and a 4-0 victory over No. 27 N.C. State today. In Baylor's title run in 2004, they dropped one point throughout the entire tournament, that coming in the quarterfinals to Ohio State in a 4-1 victory.

Baylor has twice advanced past the semifinals (2004-05) during their stretch of four straight appearances, winning the title in 2004. In 2005, the Bears fell to UCLA, 4-3. Baylor's only loss in the semifinals heading into Monday's match came at the hands of Georgia (4-3) in 2006.