Illinois at Central Michigan

Recap

The Big Storyline: Illinois fought through some unexpected absences in Arayah Simons, Kaitlyn Ewald and standout freshman Katharine Klugman to pull out an opening-meet win. Central Michigan had some gaps of its own, including veteran Morgan Tong, but saw great performances from newcomers like Canadian elite Quinn Skrupa and junior transfer Aleysia Kolyvanova.

Implications: We’ll be watching the injury/COVID landscape at Illinois closely over the coming weeks. Increased depth will be necessary if Illinois wants to challenge the top half of the Big Ten again this year.