ST. PETER, Minn. — After cruising through her first three matches, Megan Vandenberg's (DePere, Wis.) run at the Gustavus Fall Invitational came to a screeching halt Saturday, as she dropped a 7-5, 6-2 decision to UW-Eau Claire's Amy Orthaus in the championship match.
 
But the Cardinal sophomore was just getting warmed up.
 
Vandenberg teamed with Lindsey Reinisch (Hastings, Minn.) to reach the semifinals in doubles play, winning their first match 8-3, before dropping a marathon 9-8 decision against UW-Whitewater.
 
Two other Saint Mary's doubles teams, Kirsten Hoffmann (Apple Valley, Minn.)-Stacey Buss (Chicago, Ill.) and Ashley Syed (Lewisville, Texas)-Haley Jorgensen (Fallon, Nev.) also picked up victories in their first matches on Saturday, as Buss-Hoffmann won 8-2 and Syed-Jorgensen were 9-8 winners.
 
That, however, would be as far as either team would go. Hoffmann and Buss suffered an 8-2 loss to UW-Whitewater in their semifinal match, while Syed and Jorgensen were 8-1 losers to Carthage in their semifinal match.
 
The Cardinals officially kick off the 2015 season on Feb. 1, when they host Carleton in a 10 a.m. match at the Winona Tennis Center.