GameDay Preview
ST. PETER, Minn. — Saint Mary's University of Minnesota's
Laura Sonday (West St. Paul, Minn.) and
Megan Vandenberg (De Pere, Wis.) got their women's tennis seasons off to a roaring start Friday afternoon, picking up opening-round wins at the USTA/ITA Midwest Regional.
Vandenberg knocked off Central's Ashley Maley in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3, while Sonday—an All-Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference selection as a freshman last season—recorded a 6-4, 6-3 win over Alicia Picard of Edgewood.
That, however, would be the end of the singles road for the Cardinal duo, as Vandenberg dropped a 6-0, 6-1 decision to Gustavus' Michaela Schultz, and Sonday suffered a 6-2, 6-1 setback at the hands of UW-Whitewater's Jillian Wallace.
Despite the second-round singles losses, the day wasn't not done for the Cardinal tandem—not by a long shot—as the duo teamed up in the doubles portion of the tournament to collect an 8-1 victory over Nebraska Wesleyan's Bridget McGeegan and Torey Kogel.
While Vandenberg and Sonday were busy competing at the USTA/ITA Midwest Regional, several of their Cardinal teammates were taking part in the Gustie Fall Invitational Friday.
Haley Jorgensen (Fallon, Nev.) led the way for the Cardinals, winning her first two matches—beating Northwestern's Tiffany Waller (8-0) and Luther's Kelsey Kruse (6-2, 6-0)—while Cassandra Barr (Eau Claire, Wis.) kicked off her collegiate career with an 8-6 win over Michaela Wagner of Concordia (Wis.) and a 6-2, 6-0 victory against Concordia's Kendra Stoick.
Barr continued her winning ways in the third round, rallying from 2-4 down to win 8-4, while Jorgensen came up short in her third-round match, falling to UW-Eau Claire's Kendra Berry 6-1, 6-3.
Unfortunately, the rest of the Cardinal squad wasn't as fortunate, as
Ashley Syed (Lewisville, Texas),
Marissa Kinzer (Aitkin, Minn.), Emily Strezishar (East Grand Forks, Minn.),
Summer Lardy (Richmond, Minn.), and
Sheyenne Bauer (Cannon Falls, Minn.) all dropped their opening round matches.
Bauer rebounded with an 8-0 win over Gustavus' Lily Soderberg, but the other four Cardinals also dropped their consolation-round matches—Kinzer falling to Gustavus' Laura Moyneur (8-4), Strezishar to St. Norbert's Claire Heziel (8-1), Lardy to Simpson's Cassidy Bierbrodt (8-1), and Syed to Leah Olbert of St. Catherine (8-2).
The tournament continues on Saturday, with Barr and Bauer still alive in singles, and all Cardinal doubles teams—both in the USTA/ITA and Gustie Fall Invitational—in action.
