First serve
The Vikings continue Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play with a split weekend. The Vikings welcome University of Mary to Sioux Empire fitness for a match on Saturday, Feb. 9 before tripping to St. Peter, Minn. for a date with Minnesota State on Feb. 10. The Marauders have yet to play a match and will open the 2013 season when they face Augustana. Minnesota State is 1-0 in the young 2013 season and have two NSIC matches before the Vikings and Mavericks meet on a neutral court.
Picking up where they left off
The Vikings defeated Sioux Falls 9-0 to open the season and continue their reign on top of the NSIC. Each Viking won their singles match in straight sets, highlighted by
Heather Sullivan's “double-bagel” win at No. 5 singles. The Vikings also asserted their dominance in doubles, surrendering just four games.
Jessa Richards and
Hannah Gebauer blanked their Cougar counterpart, 8-0.
The following evening, Augustana did what they do best and shut out a competitive Nebraska Wesleyan squad, 9-0. All three doubles squads defeated their Prairie Wolf adversaries by a margin of 8-1. The top three singles players,
Katie Jesperson, Richards, and
Michelle Wadas, all shut their opponent out in the first set and coasted to a straight-set victory.
Jenna Helleberg and
Liz Lewis have split time at the No.6 spot and Helleberg faced a challenged in the first set, winning 6-4, but overpowered her NWU opponent 6-1 in the second set. Lewis defeated her USF opponent 6-1, 6-0 the night before.
Brief series history
Augustana has experienced great success against Minnesota State and U-Mary. Over the past two seasons, the Vikings have not lost a singles or doubles match to either the Mavericks or Marauders. The last time Augustana dropped a match to either team was on Feb. 28, 2010 when Augustana's No. 1 doubles faltered at Minnesota State. The Vikings emerged victorious as a team with a 5-4 victory and later defeated MSU in the NSIC tournament by a 5-0 match score margin. The Vikings did lose to Minnesota State in 2009, 7-2, when the Mavericks fielded a team that qualified for the NCAA Tournament. The Vikings have faced U-Mary twice and earned 9-0 victories each time.
Freshman (dare we say) phenom
Jessa Richards may not intimidate her opponents based on her size, but once she gets to the court, most opposing players are overwhelmed with the her power and shot-making ability. The freshman has not lost a match in her early collegiate career, but won in convincing fashion in both singles and doubles. Richards has only allowed an opponent to win more than two games once in 15 total sets played. The Eden Prairie, Minn. native has taken on a burden being forced into the NO. 2 singles and doubles position as a freshman, but Richards has performed outstandingly.
Really early region rankings
Central Region rankings were initially released by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association on Nov. 16, 2012 and the Vikings appeared at No. 7 in the newly aligned region. The NSIC was joined by the Mid-American Intercollegiate Athletics Association and Great American Conference to form the new Central Region at the beginning of the season.
Katie Jesperson also appears in the singles rankings, checking in at No. 19.
Jessa Richards and
Hannah Gebauer garnered the honor of the eighth-place ranking in the doubles list. The next set of region rankings will be released Feb. 20.
Coaches' corner
Marc Kurtz is in his fifth season as the head coach for the Augustana women's tennis program and it has been a fruitful four years prior. After finishing in a tie for fourth in his first season, Kurtz has led his team to 33 straight NSIC victories and three straight conference titles. During his tenure, Kurtz owns a 73-22 overall dual match, record including a 39-3 conference mark.
Second serve
The Vikings will face a pair of NSIC opponents the following week. University of Mary visits Sioux Falls, S.D. on Feb. 9 and Augustana will travel to St. Peter, Minn. for a Sunday showdown with Minnesota State on Feb. 10.
