UMAC Game of the Week - Bethany Lutheran at Minnesota Morris - Men's Tennis
UMAC Game of the Week Archives
ST. PAUL -- The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Game of the Week is a feature that takes place each week throughout the conference portion of the season with one contest being selected and highlighted as the UMAC Game of the Week.
This week’s UMAC Game of the Week is Saturday’s men’s tennis match between the University of Minnesota Morris and Bethany Lutheran College in Morris. With just two weeks to go in the regular season both teams have hopes of earning a berth in the four-team UMAC Postseason Tournament. The Vikings currently sit second in the conference with a 4-1 record while Cougars hold the fourth place spot at 2-2.
About the Cougars
Minnesota Morris tennis will take on Bethany Lutheran on Saturday in the UMAC Game of the Week. It is the first time this spring that UMM has been featured in the weekly UMAC event. The Cougars sit 2-2 in the conference with six matches to play including two against the Vikings. Three of their matches will be played in Morris but Saturday's match is in Mankato, the Cougars are 2-1 on the road this season.
Bethany is 4-1 in the UMAC and sitting in second place, a game ahead of Morris. The Cougars sit in fourth and a win over Bethany Lutheran would go a long way in trying to get earn a spot in the UMAC Tournament a few weeks from now. Michael Maudal and Jordan McCall each have two singles wins and two doubles wins on the season.
About the Vikings
It has been a season of firsts for the Bethany men's tennis program. They had their first 9-0 dual sweep win March 28 against North Central and again Wednesday versus Martin Luther. That win against Martin Luther marked the seventh victory this season, the most in program history. Paul Riediger set a program high with his 14th career doubles victory Wednesday. Finally, last week, the Vikings defeated Northwestern for the first time in program history.
Bethany currently sits in second place in the UMAC with a 4-1 mark. The Vikings highest finish in the conference was third which took place last season.
The squad has been receiving contributions from every spot in the lineup. Newcomers Carter Dahl and Brent Heflin lead the squad in singles victories with seven and six, respectively. Freshman Andrew Jelken and veterans Jason Buechler and Troy Hoyord are close behind with five. Riediger leads the crew in doubles victories with seven and freshman DJ Jackson has six.
Match Notes
- Bethany won both meetings with the Cougars last season.
- Minn.-Morris has an 11-7 edge in the series since 2006.
- Bethany is 6-2 in their last eight dual matches.
- BLC’s Carter Dahl was won seven of his last eight singles matches.
- UMM’s Michael Maudal leads the team with two wins from the number one spot in the lineup.
- DJ Jackson was won six straight doubles matches.
- Jordan McCall is tied for the Cougar team lead with a pair of wins on the season.
#UMACgotw
Bethany Lutheran Recap |
Minnesota Morris Recap |
Final Score: BLC 8, UMM 1