KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - The No. 14 Tennessee men’s tennis team defeated Illinois, 4-2, Saturday afternoon in the opening round of ITA Kickoff Weekend. The Vols dropped the doubles point, but the singles part of the match was filled with some intense competition.

No. 14 Tennessee (4-1) defeated Illinois (0-1), 4-2, on Saturday at Goodfriend Tennis Center in the ITA Kickoff Weekend. Alejandro Moreno earned a win for Tennessee with a, 6-1, 5-7, 6-4, victory on court five.

Thursday's OVC slate includes the Tennessee State Tigers (9-12, 5-5 OVC) meeting the Western Illinois Leathernecks (8-12, 2-7 OVC) at 8:00 PM ET on ESPN+. Advertisement Article continues below ...

Tennessee dropped the point in doubles to start the afternoon, but came back to win four points in singles. The Vols saw Jan Kobierski and Alan Jesudason step up when they were down early in doubles, but Tennessee lost two close matches to give Illinois the point.

Tennessee will host Michigan on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. in the ITA Kickoff Weekend championship match. The Vols and the No. 25 Wolverines will have a lot on the line for this match, which includes a spot into the Indoor National Championships later this season.

Illinois is ranked 18th in the new AP Top 25 poll, released Monday. The Illini (14-6, 6-4 Big Ten) also are 20th in the coaches' poll.

Totals 27-52 24-29 84. Halftime_Tennessee St. 40-28. 3-Point Goals_E. Illinois 4-16 (Jacobi 2-4, Fruster 2-5, Connor 0-1, Curtis 0-1, Sawyer 0-1, Stapleton 0-1, Shelton 0-3), Tennessee St. 6-16 ...

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Army at Colgate, 6 p.m. George Washington at UMass, 6 p.m. La Salle at St. Bonaventure, 6 p.m. Maryland at Penn St., 6 p.m. Rhode Island at Fordham, 6:30 p.m. Bucknell at Loyola (Md.), 7 p.m. Butler at Seton Hall, 7 p.m.

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