Illinois-Chicago and Western Illinois provide the next Mid-Continent obstacles for the streaking NIU men’s tennis team.

The 14-8 Huskies take on the Flames 3 p.m. on the West Campus Courts Tuesday. NIU looks to extend a seven-meet winning streak.

“We’re rallying behind each other more than we have all year,” NIU head coach Chuck Merzbacher said. “The Mid-Continent Tournament is just around the corner. We have a couple matches left, and we’re excited about finishing the year strong.”

UIC has several seniors on its team and the experience worries Merzbacher. “They’re much better than last year,” he said.

While playing UIC, Merzbacher will have one eye on Western, which plays 2 p.m. Saturday at the West Campus Courts. The Leathernecks have an 11-meet winning streak this spring and a 15-1 dual-meet record.

“They haven’t lost in ‘91 so Western is obviously very talented,” Merzbacher said. “They can come in here and beat us; we realize that.”

No. 2 player senior Erik Andersch leads the Huskies with a 27-7 singles mark so far this season, while No. 1 Mats Persson holds a 25-11 mark.

But Merzbacher highly praises his No. 5 player Paul Gill, who has been playing on and off in the top six spots until establishing himself late February. “Paul didn’t play particularly well against DePaul (the last Huskies’ meet),” Merzbacher said. “But he found a way to win. He’s a very good match player. He has that never-die attitude.”

Gill overcame two match points to pull off a 2-6, 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-4) win last Thursday.

In between meets, Merzbacher has been keeping busy with recruiting. Merzbacher has signed Glenbard West sensation Marty Engle, who is ranked No. 2 in the state by the Chicago Sun-Times. Merzbacher also landed Fostoria, Ohio’s Matt Green, who is ranked in the state’s top eight and Eric Gonzaga, the No. 1 seed in the Wisconsin Private School Tournament.