WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's tennis team is back in Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Friday, as the Cardinals host conference power Gustavus for a 6:30 p.m. match at the Winona Tennis Center.



The Matchups:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (1-1 MIAC | 8-5 Overall)
vs. Gustavus Gusties  (5-0 MIAC | 10-4 Overall)

GameDay Live On The Web:
Video Preview | GameDay Program

Last Action:
The Cardinals kicked off conference play last weekend, beating Bethel 5-4 on Friday, before falling to Saint John's 8-1 on Saturday, with both games at the Winona Tennis Center. … Gustavus, meanwhile, has been off since March 10, when the Gusties recorded a pair of convincing nonconference wins over UW-Eau Claire (9-0) and Augustana (S.D.) (8-1) in St. Peter, Minn.

SMU vs. Gustavus — Their Last Meeting:
March 19, 2011: The Cardinals ran into a buzz-saw in St. Peter, Minn., as Gustavus gave the Cardinals a first-hand look at why they have been the dominant team in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference over the past decade — as the Gusties handed SMU a 9-0 setback.

Up Next:
The Cardinals hit the road on Sunday, traveling to Moorhead, Minn., for a 9 a.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference match against Concordia. … Gustavus, meanwhile, is right back in action on Saturday, as the Gusties host St. Norbert (11:30 a.m.) and St. Cloud State (6:30 p.m.) in nonconference action in St. Peter, Minn.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
2012 Roster | 2012 Schedule | 2012 Statistics | 2012 Media Guide
After opening the season with 11 straight nonconference matches, nine of SMU's final 10 matches are Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contests. … Friday's match vs. Gustavus is the third straight home match for SMU. … The Cardinals, who put together a season-high four-match winning streak with victories over Concordia (Wis.), Ripon, Marywood and King's College, has lost back-to-back matches just once this season. … Michael Lunka (Eagan, Minn.) and Bobby Steingraeber (La Crosse, Wis.) continued their winning ways last weekend, posting back-to-back wins at No. 1 doubles against Bethel and Saint John's to extended their season-opening winning streak to 13 straight. … Sam Puff (Eden Prairie, Minn.) had his season-high nine-match singles winning streak snapped with a 7-6, 2-6, 10-8 loss to Bethel's Reggie Ronning last Friday. … Puff leads the team with 10 singles wins, while Lunka and Gavin Smith (White Bear Lake, Minn.) are second with seven. … As a team, SMU is 41-37 in singles play, while owning an impressive 29-10 mark in doubles.

Gustavus Gusties News and Notes:
2012 Roster | 2012 Schedule | 2012 Statistics
After opening the season with losses to Hawaii Pacific and BYI-Hawaii, the Gusties have gone 10-2 in their last 12 matches — including wins in their last five straight. … Gustavus has dropped just three games during its current five-match winning streak — beating Chicago University 7-2, dropping Elmhurst, Grinnell and UW-Eau Claire by identical 9-0 scores, and topping Augustana 8-1. … The Gusties have had 16 different players compete this season. … Mya Smith-Dennis and Tyler Johnson share the team lead with eight singles wins. Smith-Dennis is 2-0 at No. 1 and 6-2 at No. 2, while Johnson is 3-2 at No. 3, 2-0 at No. 4 and 3-1 at No. 5. … GAC has used 14 different doubles combinations this season, led by Amrik Donkena and Smith-Dennis, who are 8-1 — all at No. 1. … As a team, the Gusties are an impressive 34-8 in doubles play this season. … The Gusties swept the 2011 regular-season and conference tournament titles without dropping a match against an MIAC foe. … GAC is looking for an unprecedented 24th straight MIAC crown.