April 13, 2012

DeKALB, Ill. – Northern Illinois men’s tennis has a crucial weekend ahead of itself with Mid-American Conference Championship implications as it hosts Toledo and Buffalo Saturday and Sunday, respectively, at Rockford Boylan Tennis Center. The Huskies and the Bulls are 2-0 in MAC play, while the Rockets rest at 1-2.

NIU improved its unblemished MAC record last weekend when it defeated Ball State, 6-1, dropping the doubles point and sweeping singles play. The conference victory over Cardinals marked the first time since 1974 that Northern Illinois defeated BSU and Western Michigan in the same season. The win also matched the team’s highest win total since 2004.

The ’74 Huskies were lead by then-recent graduate and NIU Hall-of-Famer Tom Gullickson, an eight-time Wimbledon qualifier and U.S. Open Mixed Doubles Champion in 1984.

After the triumph over Ball State, the Huskies traveled to Milwaukee, Wis. and took on Marquette, where NIU fell to the Golden Eagles, 4-3, and dropped to 18-6 overall on the season.

Toledo is 15-9 on the season and 1-2 in the Mid-American Conference, following a 4-3 loss to Ball State Thursday April 12. The Rockets lone win of the conference season occurred last weekend when they defeated Chicago State, 7-0.

Buffalo rests 7-8 on the 2012 register, is unblemished in conference play at 2-0 and has won six of its last seven contests. The Bulls are fresh off a 4-3 loss to Binghamton on April 8 and will take on Chicago State Saturday before facing the Huskies Sunday. UB has handily defeated its MAC opponents, dropping Toledo, 6-1, and Western Michigan, 5-2.

With a weekend sweep, the Huskies would claim at least a share of the Mid-American Conference Championship, its first in program history. The NIU men’s tennis program has won six conference championships, last staking claim in the 1997 Midwest Conference Championship.

Following the weekend, Northern Illinois will close the regular season with doubleheader at Chicago State and UIC April 20.