Box Score

ST. PETER, Minn. — It wasn't quite the start the Saint Mary's University women's tennis team was hoping for.

But the finish was quite nice.

The Cardinals didn't get off to the greatest of starts at the Minnesota Intercollegiate Atheltic Conference Champioinships Friday afternoon.

First, Mother Nature decided Friday morning would be a good time for a late-April show, forcing the first day of the conference's season-ending tournament inside.

Second, the Cardinals lost first-set tiebreakers at No. 1 and No. 2 singles, as well as a three-set marathon at No. 3.

Third, SMU came out on the short end of a 6-0 decision to Bethel in a match played to a decision.

As forgettable as the start was, the Cardinals made sure the finish was one to remember, as SMU closed out its season with a 5-2 win over Macalester in the ninth-place match.

In Friday's opening-round match against Bethel, Ann Leeder (Greenfield, Wis.) and Val Meschke (Pequot Lakes, Minn.) both lost first-set tiebreakers, with Leeder losing 8-6 in the breaker, while Meschke was a 7-3 loser — and neither was able to recover, falling 6-2 and 6-0, respectively, in the second sets of their No. 1 and No. 2 singles matches.

Aubrey Hirsch (Topeka, Kan.) battled back from a 6-4 first-set loss to win the second set 7-5, but had nothing left in the decisive third set, falling 10-2.

SMU also came up empty in its three doubles matches, managing to win just nine games combined in the three matches.