Michigan State and Illinois Nab Men’s Tennis Weekly Awards

ROSEMONT, Ill. – The Big Ten Conference has announced its men’s tennis weekly awards for matches played March 11-15, 2026.

Player of the Week
Matthew Forbes, Michigan State
So. – Raleigh, N.C. – Laurel Springs HS

• Helped No. 46-ranked Michigan State to a 4-3 win over No. 1 Ohio State on Sunday, snapping the Buckeyes’ 49-match conference win streak
• Playing at No. 1 singles, knocked off 22nd-ranked Jack Anthrop, 6-2, 1-6, 6-3, to clinch match point, handing OSU its first conference regular season home loss since 2003
• Recorded a straight-sets win on court one in MSU’s 6-1 victory at Penn State on Friday
• Ranked 11th in singles by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA)
• The 2025 Big Ten All-Freshman Team selection earns his second career Big Ten Player of the Week Award, having previously been honored on February 5, 2025

Freshman of the Week
Adam Jilly, Illinois
Fr. – Budapest, Hungary – Budai Nagy Antal HS

• Recorded match point in back-to-back matches last week as No. 9 Illinois won road matches against No. 51 Nebraska and No. 30 Wisconsin
• Slotted at No. 4 singles, went 2-0 with a straight-set triumph of Nebraska’s Niels Van Der Sijs, followed by a marathon win over Wisconsin’s Edouard Aubert (6-4, 3-6, 6-4)
• Has won eight of his last nine singles matches and has 23 combined wins on the year
• Entered last week’s action ranked 111th in singles by the ITA
• Captures his second Big Ten Freshman of the Week accolade after taking home the award the first week of the season on September 17, 2025

2025-26 Big Ten Men’s Tennis Player of the Week
Sept. 17       
P: Ozan Baris, Sr., MSU
F: Adam Jilly, Fr., ILL

Sept. 24       
P: Nikita Filin, So., OSU

Oct. 1          
P: Aidan Kim, Jr., OSU
F: Sam Olszakowski, ORE

Oct. 8          
P: Nicholas Steglehner, Sr., MICH
F: Arnav Bhandari, Fr., MICH

Oct. 15        
P: Sam Landau, Sr., IND
F: Jeri Lassila, Fr., NEB

Oct. 22        
P: Spencer Johnson, Jr., UCLA
F: Max Dahlin, R-Fr., MICH

Nov. 5         
P: David Saye, Sr., MSU

Nov. 12       
P: Jack Anthrop, Sr., OSU
F: Max Dahlin, R-Fr., MICH

Jan. 14         
P: Bjorn Swenson, Sr., MICH
F: Max Exsted, Fr., USC

Jan. 21         
P: Alex Okonkwo, Jr., OSU
F: Sasha Colleu, Fr., ILL

Jan. 28         
P: Alexander Bernard, Sr., OSU
F: Jeri Lassila, Fr., NEB
F: Max Exsted, Fr., USC

Feb. 4          
P: Nikita Filin, So., OSU
F: Cooper Han, Fr., NU

Feb. 11        
P: Max Dahlin, R-Fr., MICH
F: Max Dahlin, R-Fr., MICH

Feb. 18        
P: Jack Anthrop, Sr., OSU
F: Kyle Chesman, Fr., PSU

Feb. 25        
P: William Mroz, Sr., ILL
F: Max Exsted, Fr., USC

March 4       
P: Gabriel Debru, Fr., ILL
F: Adam Jilly, Fr., ILL

March 11
P: Zach Viiala, R-So., ILL
F: Branko Djuric, Fr., USC

March 18     
P: Matthew Forbes, So., MSU
F: Adam Jilly, Fr., ILL