Written by David Youngs
Fresh off a bye weekend, the Gustavus women’s tennis team covered the Land of 10,000 Lakes with a pair of non-conference matchups against NSIC opponents on Saturday. Half of the team competed at home against Winona State while the other half headed north to take on Minnesota-Duluth at a neutral site in Virginia, Minn.
Winona State 4, Gustavus 3 | PHOTO GALLERY
SAINT PETER, Minn. – In a match that could have gone either way, the chips fell on Winona State’s side of the table on Saturday afternoon at Swanson Tennis Center. Despite a valiant effort, the Gustie women dropped a 4-3 contest to Division II opponent and NSIC staple Winona State.
Gustavus came out hot in doubles by securing two of three matches to win the doubles point. The tandem of Lili Elofson (Jr., Saint Peter) and Brooke Haddorff (Fy. Eagan) rolled to a 6-3 win at No. 3 doubles to kick start the Gusties. Elofson and Haddorff have been lights out for the Gusties, going 2-0 in this year’s spring season and 3-0 in last fall’s Gustie Invitational.
Simona Potokova (Sr., Nova Dubnica’, Slovakia) and Yuki Oda (Kawasaki, Japan) locked up the doubles point for the Gusties with an impressive 7-5 win at No. 1 doubles. Trailing 4-5 with their backs up against the wall, Potakova and Oda rattled off three unanswered games to seal the deal for the doubles point. The duo is now 4-2 on the 2021-22 season and the win was Potokova’s 16th win of her career at the No. 1 doubles spot for the Gusties.
The Gusties dominated at the Nos. 5 and 6 singles spots, dropping only four games between the two matches. Megan Karrow (Sr., Woodbury) rolled to a 6-2, 6-1 win at the five-hole to earn her second consecutive win on the spring season. Haddorff cruised to a ‘bagel and breadstick victory’ with a 6-0, 6-1 win at the No. 6 spot. Haddorff has now won three of her first four college singles matches and is 2-0 on the spring season.
Potokova and Rachel Lindrud (Sr., North Oaks) both pushed their opponents to three sets at Nos. 1 and 3 singles.
Despite the loss, the Gusties fought hard against a Division II team that is ranked third in the NSIC.
Coaches Corner
Despite the loss, a wealth of positives came from Saturday’s match in Saint Peter.
“The girls all battled so hard today against a really good Winona State team,” Assistant Coach Heidi Carlson said. “We snuck out the doubles point by winning 7-5 at No. 1 after being down 4-5. Five of the last games went to deuce and deciding point.”
And while the Gusties didn’t get the result they wanted, Carlson was impressed with the poise that the Gusties competed with.
“In singles, almost every match was a fight to the finish,” Carlson said. “Megan Karrow and Brooke Haddroff set the stage for our 1-4 singles to battle and be able to stay in the match. I’m proud of how they all fought and never gave up. It was a great competitive match for us, which is always what we want.”
Gustavus 6, Minnesota Duluth 1
VIRGINIA, Minn. – Stacked up against a Division II opponent on the Iron Range, the Gustie women brought their lunch pales to work to secure a dominant win over Minnesota-Duluth on Saturday afternoon.
A shutout win and a nailbiter sealed the doubles point for Gusties. Renata Hernandez (Fy., Saint James) and Halle Rosentreter (Fy., Wilmot, Wis.) rolled to a 6-0 win at No. 3 doubles to start the day. The win was the first of the spring for the Gustie tennis newcomers, who won two matches while playing together at last fall’s Gustie Invitational.
Pairing up for the first time this season, Anna Stutz (Sr., Dellwood) and Alli Laux (So., Onalaska, Wis.) grinded out a tight 7-5 win at No. 2 doubles to secure the doubles point for Gustavus.
Strong singles performances sealed the deal for the Gusties against the Bulldogs. Laux carried her dominance from doubles into singles with a 6-2, 6-4 win at the No. 2 spot. Laux is now 2-1 on the young season with wins at No. 5 and No. 2 singles.
Hayley Trebil (Sr., Edina), Emily Norman (Jr., Rochester), Rosentreter, and Hernandez also tallied singles wins for the Gusties. Rosentreter and Hernandez both rolled to their first collegiate victories in dual match format on the day. Rosentreter routed her opponent with a 6-0, 6-2 victory at No. 5 singles while Hernandez cruised to a 6-1, 6-1 victory at No. 6 singles.
And while the Gusties dominated in singles against the Bulldogs, their doubles play has propelled them through the start of the 2022 season. Gustavus has won at least two of three doubles matches in four of their five matches so far this spring.
Coaches Corner
Saturday’s victory pushed the Gusties to a 3-2 record on the 2022 season. Head Coach Jon Carlson was impressed with what he saw from his team on Saturday at Virginia Indoor Tennis Center.
“We had the chance to learn a lot about ourselves today,” Carlson said following the win. “Today provided a lot of good, quality matchplay for the team. We’re excited to get back to work and improve on the things that we need to work on.”
What’s Next
The Gusties (3-2, 1-0 MIAC) will carry the momentum from a pair of quality matches into next weekend when they take on non-conference opponents Wisconsin-Eau Claire and Luther (10-3, 8-0) at home. Gustavus defeated both teams in 2021, beating Luther 7-2 and shutting out Eau Claire 9-0.