WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's tennis team steps out of conference play on Friday, as the Cardinals entertain Northwestern (Iowa) College in a 2 p.m. nonconference match at the Winona Tennis Center.
 
The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (2-3 Overall) vs. Northwestern (Minn.) Eagles (1-1 Overall)
 
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Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals dropped a pair of Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference games last weekend, falling to St. Catherine 9-0 last Friday at the Winona Tennis Center, while dropping a 6-3 decision to Bethel at the U of M Baseline Tennis Center in Minneapolis, Minn., a day later | SCU Recap * BU Recap
• Northwestern: Friday's match against Saint Mary's is the first of the spring season for the Red Raiders, who went 1-1—falling to Loras (7-2) and beating Buena Vista (8-1) during the fall portion of their schedule
 
Saint Mary's vs. Northwestern—Their Last Meeting:
• Today's nonconference match between the Cardinals and the Red Raiders is the first in program history
 
Up Next:
•  Saint Mary's returns to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play next Friday, hosting Hamline in a 5 p.m. matchup at the Winona Tennis Center
• Northwestern: The Red Raiders are right back in action on Saturday, heading to St. Paul, Minn., for back-to-back matches against Northwestern (Minn.) and St. Thomas.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2015 Roster | 2015 Schedule | 2015 Statistics
With their victories over Bethany Lutheran and Martin Luther earlier this season, the Cardinals head into Friday's match against Northwestern with a 16-4 record in nonconference matches over the past three seasons. … The Cardinals' match against Northwestern Friday is the fifth home match is the first six contests for the Cardinals, who play six of their first seven matches on the home court—where Saint Mary's has collected nine of its 12 wins over the past two seasons. … Saint Mary's loss to St. Catherine last Friday snapped its two-match winning streak, while the Cardinals' 6-3 setback vs. Bethel marked the first match this season that was not decided by a 9-0 score. … Katie Krull (Rochester, Minn.) and Megan Vandenberg (De Pere, Wis.) collected straight-set singles wins vs. Bethel last Saturday, while Krull and Kirsten Hoffmann (Apple Valley, Minn.) teamed for an 8-4 win at No. 1 doubles. … Vandenberg—who won three matches in reaching the title match of the Gustavus Fall Invitational—owns a team-leading six singles wins, while Haley Jorgensen (Fallon, Nev.) is second with five and Krull is third with three. … Hoffmann and Krull have teamed to win a team-leading three of their five doubles matches—all at No. 1. … As a team, Saint Mary's is 14-16 in dual singles matches, while going 7-8 in doubles play. … Saint Mary's surrendered just nine games in its 9-0 win over Bethany Lutheran on Feb. 5, before dropping only 10 games in sweeping Martin Luther 9-0 two days later.
 
Scouting The Northwestern (Iowa) Red Raiders:
2015 Roster | 2015 Schedule | 2015 Statistics
The Red Raiders head into Friday's match against Saint Mary's looking to improve on their 8-8 overall record—and 5-2, second-place showing in the Great Plains Athletic Conference—a year ago. … Frankie Eszes returns for her senior year after being named GPAC Player of the Year last season. Eszes posted a 10-5 record at No. 1 singles and owns a school-record 37-15 record in three seasons. … Eszes—who was also named the conference' player of the year as a freshman—also boasted a 9-6 record at No. 1 doubles to push her school-record doubles mark to 35-18. … Daniela Lozano and Valerie Robinson picked up wins in both matches against Loras and Buena Vista on Sept. 13, while McKayla Johnson, Anna Haler and Arin Bishop earned singles wins, and the doubles teams of Eszes-Terry Odera, Lozano-Robinson, and Johnson-Haler were all victorious in the 8-1 win over Buena Vista. …