Saints, Eagles share top spot in UMAC women's tennis preseason poll
Preseason Video Preview: Megan Johnson, University of Northwestern
2014 UMAC Women’s Tennis Coaches’ Poll
T-1. 23 Points - College of St. Scholastica (3 First Place Votes)
T-1. 23 Points – University of Northwestern (Minn.) (3 First Place Votes)
3. 16 Points - University of Minnesota Morris
4. 11 Points - Martin Luther College
5. 10 Points - Bethany Lutheran College
6. 7 Points - North Central University (Minn.)
ST. PAUL – The College of St. Scholastica and the University of Northwestern women’s tennis teams are predicted to share the 2014 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) women’s tennis regular season title according to the league’s coaches. The Saints and the Eagles each earned three first place votes in the annual poll.
T-1. College of St. Scholastica Saints
2013 Overall Record: 21-5
2013 UMAC Record: 10-0
2013 UMAC Finish: 1st
Starters Returning: 3
Starters Lost: 4
Unlike previous seasons, the St. Scholastica women’s tennis team will have a lot of new faces in its lineup this year.CSS will be without three of its top four players from a season ago. The Saints lost graduated senior Megan Lawrence, who finished with the program’s best career singles winning percentage (.842). CSS also saw the unexpected departure of top singles player Hillary Bungarden and No. 2 player Rachael Zwiener. Bungarden ended her career just five singles wins shy of the most victories in program history.
The Saints do return junior Alexis Gunderson, who is a two-time All-UMAC selection. She is the only All-UMAC performer back from last season that is back.
Head Coach Wells Patten will hope Alexa Herbst, Aleksandra Ochrymowicz and Katie Kingston step up their games this season. In addition, the Saints will look for newcomers Jessica Solberg and Madeleine Scanlan to step right in. Senior Pamela Hartley also returns to the Saints, after spending last season at Walsh University (Ohio).
T-1. University of Northwestern Eagles
2013 Overall Record: 12-9
2013 UMAC Record: 8-2
2013 UMAC Finish: 2nd
Starters Returning: 3
Starters Lost: 3
Northwestern presents one of its strongest squads in recent years in 2014, returning several of its top performers while bolstering the lineup with newcomers. In his first season as the Eagles’ head coach, Matt Swigart led UNW to a 12-9 overall record and an 8-2 finish in UMAC play.
2013 UMAC Player of the Year Megan Johnson returns as Northwestern’s top player. A two-time all-conference honoree, Johnson, a junior, broke numerous records with her 15-6 overall record and 8-2 UMAC record a year ago. Also returning to Northwestern’s lineup is Kelly Johnson and Rachel Bostrom. Kelly Johnson, another two-year All-UMAC player, went 8-2 in conference play in the Eagles’ No. 2 singles spot and paired with Megan Johnson at No. 1 doubles for the second year. Bostrom enters her sophomore season after earning all-conference accolades in 2013 with a 6-2 league record.
Swigart is excited for the additions of Karen Moe and Tina Matetich. Moe, who will most likely play in the second singles slot, was the North Dakota high school singles champion in her junior year of high school and took state runner up honors in her senior season. Matetich, a Hibbing, Minn. native will also join the singles lineup in her first year in an Eagles uniform.
3. University of Minnesota Morris Cougars
2013 Overall Record: 5-6
2013 UMAC Record: 5-5
2013 UMAC Finish: T-3rd
Starters Returning: 5
Starters Lost: 0
The Cougar women’s tennis team will look to improve off their 5-5 record in UMAC play from a year ago this season as they welcome back a majority of the team that reached the UMAC semi-finals by making a strong showing in the second half of the season and winning four of their last five meets in 2013.
Abby Fragodt, Christina Mollan, Kayla Kraemer, Rachelle Dotas, and Kayla Henga all return from last season’s UMAC Tournament team and hope to build on last year’s record. Fragodt led the way for the Cougars last year going 9-2 from the number one spot while Mollan was 6-5 and Kraemer was 5-6 on the season.
4. Martin Luther College Knights
2013 Overall Record: 2-12
2013 UMAC Record: 2-8
2013 UMAC Finish: 5th
Starters Returning: 5
Starters Lost: 1
The Martin Luther College women’s tennis team will look for improvement from last season’s 2-12 season, with five of the team’s six top singles performers returning from last season.
Jackie Keller returns in the top singles spot after playing there all 14 matches last season as a sophomore, while Carissa Kock and Holly Marquardt each return in the No. 2 and No. 3 positions. Melissa Stibb and Charis Goelzer combined to play in 22 singles matches a season ago, and figure to find a spot in the second half of the line-up again this season.
Newcomer Elizabeth Broring figures to get a chance early at a spot in singles competition, while Mateja Epple returns as depth in both singles and doubles.
5. Bethany Lutheran College Vikings
2013 Overall Record: 5-16
2013 UMAC Record: 5-5
2013 UMAC Finish: T-3rd
Starters Returning: 2
Starters Lost: 4
Bethany women's tennis returns four players to a team that finished .500 in the UMAC and qualified for the conference tournament last season.
Marissa Teems is the top returner of the quartet after playing most of last season at No. 2 singles and No. 1 doubles. She's an aggressive player who's consistently working and gained a lot of development. Kasarah Smart, Ashley Stahl, and Anna Wiechmann are the other returnees.
A newcomer expected to make an impact right away is Morgan Schwartz. In high school, she played well at No. 1 singles and doubles throughout her career.
6. North Central University Rams
2013 Overall Record: 0-10
2013 UMAC Record: 0-10
2013 UMAC Finish: 6th
Starters Returning: 1
Starters Lost: 5
North Central women’s tennis continues to build their strength in 2014 as they look to break a two-year winless streak in the UMAC. The Rams return three players with quality experience and add several others with good high school training.
Sophomore Nicole Demuth returns after playing in the Rams third singles slot in nine of ten matches a year ago. Sophomore Mary Metzger comes back after holding the fourth singles slot in six of ten matches in 2014. Demuth and Metzger were also the Rams No. 2 doubles pair in six of ten matches last year. Sophomore Sarah Trickey also returns after playing singles in all ten matches last year in spots three through six. Trickey also was a part of the only Rams doubles pairing to earn a victory last season when she teamed with Demuth to go 1-1 in the second slot. Transfer Hope Carlson will be a much needed addition for the Rams in both singles and doubles action after a high school career at Lake Holcombe HS (Wis.).