Tennis championships shares up for grabs in double "Game of the Week"
Saturday, April 30, 2016 - Men's and Women's Tennis: St. Scholastica at Northwestern
ST. PAUL, Minn.---With the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) men’s and women’s tennis seasons set to wrap up early next week, the final weekend couldn’t provide two more intriguing match ups that have major implications on the regular season titles.
Pending weather, the University of Northwestern-St. Paul is set to host the College of St. Scholastica for regular-season finales for all four men's and women's squads Saturday in a thrilling double-dose edition of the “UMAC Game of the Week.”
Heading into the weekend, both the St. Scholastica men’s and women’s tennis teams have already locked up a share of the UMAC regular season title for their respective genders with 9-0 records to this point. The only teams standing in the way of outright titles for both Saints’ squads are both teams from Northwestern.
With wins over Bethany Lutheran and victories Saturday, both Northwestern squads could share the titles with the Saints. For the women, a win against Bethany Lutheran and St. Scholastica would secure the third-straight share of a UMAC title for Northwestern, while the same scenario on the men’s side for Northwestern would clinch the first UMAC title in program history.
On the men’s side, the Saints have already locked up a share of their 20th-straight conference title and will look to remain the lone UMAC champion in conference history. Earlier in the season, the Saints dropped just two games against the Eagles to cruise to a 9-0 decision. The Saints have lost just two sets to UMAC opponents all season – one each in singles and doubles against Martin Luther College in early April.
Looking ahead to the women’s match, the Saints secured their 19th conference regular season championship in the last 20 years following losses to Northwestern a year ago. In their first matchup with the Eagles this season, the Saints won 7-2 – the Saints’ only set losses to UMAC opponents this year.
Heading into the season, six All-UMAC men’s selections from 2015 returned to both rosters highlighted by reigning Player of the Year
Josh Stainer for the Saints. They also returned
Logan Engelstad and
Mike Fontana, while the Eagles welcomed back
Brent Jacobus,
Josh Kimball and
CJ Lloyd after breakout rookie seasons.
The Saints had to reload with talent and have other players step up on the women's team for 2016 as just two All-UMAC selections from a year ago returned in
Daniela Rojas and
Madeleine Scanlan. The Eagles returned a ton of firepower from 2015 with five All-UMAC picks back on the roster including
Birdie Bardwell,
Rachel Bostrom,
Brooke Lapinski,
Tina Matetich and
Karen Moe.
At the beginning of 2016, Northwestern was selected first in the UMAC Men’s Tennis Preseason Coaches’ Poll with 23 points ahead of St. Scholastica in second with 21 points. Both Northwestern and St. Scholastica were picked to finish tied for first place in the women’s standings with 23 points in the poll.
The Match Ups
On the men’s side, St. Scholastica enters Saturday’s match with a 13-6 overall record and 9-0 conference mark. The Eagles are 11-13 overall and 7-1 in conference play (at the time of publication). The Saints can win the title outright with a victory, while Northwestern has a shot at its first title with a win over Bethany Lutheran and Northwestern. The Eagles will attempt to defeat the Saints for the first time in 50 tries.
On the women’s side, St. Scholastica enters Saturday’s match with a 17-5 overall mark and 9-0 record in UMAC matches. The Eagles are 20-5 overall and 7-1 versus UMAC foes (at the time of release). The Saints can win the title outright with a win over the Eagles, while the Eagles could take a share with wins over Bethany Lutheran and St. Scholastica. The Saints look to avenge their fall from the top after losing all three matches – including the postseason championship – to the Eagles last year.
Need to Know – Men’s Match
- Northwestern has won six of its last seven matches overall.
- Northwestern is undefeated on its home court this season.
- St. Scholastica is the lone UMAC men’s tennis team to win a regular season title and has won at least a share of its 20th-straight championship already.
- St. Scholastica has won 49-straight against Northwestern and holds a 49-1 advantage all-time.
- St. Scholastica enters the match with a nine-match overall winning streak.
Need to Know – Women’s Match
- Northwestern has won eight of its last nine matches overall.
- Northwestern could clinch a share of its third-straight UMAC title with a win pending victory over Bethany Lutheran.
- Northwestern is the only UMAC team to have defeated St. Scholastica in program history – the Saints hold a 36-5 record over the Eagles.
- St. Scholastica has already clinched at least a share of its 19th UMAC title in 20 years.
- St. Scholastica enters Saturday’s match with a 10-match overall winning streak.
Who to Watch – Men’s Match
Top players on both sides should provide intriguing matchups in both singles and doubles play. Though Northwestern’s eight-man roster is comprised of just first-years and sophomores, the Eagles have seen great success this season.
Lloyd and
Jacobus have lost just once at No. 1 doubles with Lloyd anchoring the Eagles at the top singles spot.
Landon Ridpath and
Derek Williams have also lost just once each in doubles play and
Kimball and
Cameron Fair have five or more wins each in singles. For the Saints,
Stainer and
Engelstad are on an eight-match winning streak together and both are undefeated in doubles.
Fontana,
Makar Grytsevych and
Matt Tellander have all won at least six UMAC singles matches while
Jordan Lindholm has seven doubles wins. There are 11 Saints who have recorded two or more UMAC singles wins so far in 2016.
Who to Watch – Women’s Match
Powerful players across the board on both sides in the women’s battle should highlight a competitive match Saturday. All season
Moe has proven she may be the best in the UMAC boasting a 22-2 overall record and 8-0 UMAC mark for the Eagles. The junior was also ranked No. 22 in the ITA Central Region individual player rankings at the time of release. She and partner
Lapinski have lost just once this season – that loss was to the Saints’
Scanlan and
Jessica Solberg who ranked No. 15 in the ITA Central Region doubles rankings upon publication. Together, Moe and Scanlan have accounted for seven of the 11 UMAC Player of the Week honors this season. The Saints boast nine players with four or more UMAC singles wins including
Sarah Coryell with nine and 10 players with three or more doubles wins including
Alexia Brascugli. Lapinski,
Henke,
Bostrom and
Matetich all have five or more UMAC singles wins for the Eagles.
The Basics
The men’s and women’s matches between St. Scholastica and Northwestern are set for this Saturday, April 30 at 2 p.m., pending weather. Both contests will take place on the Northwestern campus in St. Paul, Minnesota.
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”.