Women's St. Olaf Match Summary / Men's St. Olaf Match Summary

NORTHFIELD, Minn. — The final scores were nearly the same, but Saturday's Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference losses to St. Olaf had far different meanings for the Saint Mary's University men's and women's tennis teams.

For the SMU men, their 7-2 loss to the Oles marked the end of the road for the Cardinals, who closed out their season with two wins in nine conference matches, while finishing 8-10 overall.

For the SMU women, their 6-3 loss may have ended their three-match winning streak, but it did little to dampen the Cardinals' drive for a first-ever MIAC Tournament berth.

"It was a couple of hard-fought matches," said SMU coach Jeff Halberg. "Both teams battled hard, (St. Olaf) was just a little deeper and a little stronger than we were."

The Cardinal women fell to 4-4 in conference play, dropping them to sixth with two conference matches to play. With the top three spots in the conference standings locked up by St. Thomas, Gustavus and Macalester, St. Olaf currently holds down the No. 4 spot in the race for one of the final three MIAC Tournament berths. Saint Benedict (4-3) is currently fifth, while SMU (4-4) is sixth and Carleton (3-4) is seventh. A win against unbeaten and league-leading Gustavus Sunday, or a win vs. St. Catherine Tuesday, would all but guarantee SMU a spot in the six-team conference tournament.

"There's still a lot of tennis to play," said Halberg of his women's team. "We need to come out keep playing solid tennis in our final two matches — if we do that, the rest will take care of itself."

Toni Troumbly (Bovey, Minn.) picked up the Cardinals' lone singles win vs. St. Olaf, rallying from a set down to post a 4-6, 6-3, 10-4. Troumbly then teamed with Abby Cooper (La Crosse, Wis.) for one of SMU's two doubles wins. Kayla Lenz (Pequot Lakes, Minn.,) and Aubrey Hirsch (Topeka, Kan.) were  the other doubles winners, collecting an 8-3 win at No. 1.

On the men's side, Walter Mannino (Chicago, Ill.) had a hand in both Cardinal wins, posting a 6-0, 6-4 victory at No. 1 singles, then joining with Steve Clements (La Crosse, Wis.) for an 8-1 win at No. 1 doubles.

"The guys had a good season — they played some excellent matches and have a lot to be proud of," Halberg said. "And the women, they've still got three matches to play — with a lot on the line."