SAINT MARY’S CARDINALS

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2023: 2-5 MIAC, 9-9 Overall

BETHEL ROYALS

Home | Roster | Stats | Schedule

2023: 2-4 MIAC, 4-10 Overall

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SMU-BETHEL * LAST MEETING:

March 27, 2022 * Winona, MN

L, 8-1 * Series History

SAINT MARY’S * LAST ACTION:

April 16, 2023 * Waverly, IA

Wartburg * L, 8-1

BETHEL * LAST ACTION:

April 18, 2023 * Arden Hills, MN

Hamline * x-x

SAINT MARY’S * UP NEXT:

April 22, 2023 * Duluth, MN

St. Scholastica * 1 p.m.

BETHEL * UP NEXT: 

April 22, 2023 * Collegeville, MN

Saint John’s * 3 p.m.

SAINT MARY’S CARDINALS SCOUTING REPORT:

• FOR THE RECORD: The Cardinals head into their conference match against Bethel sitting at 9-9 overall, including 2-6 through eight MIAC contests.

• LAST TIME OUT: Playing a rare outdoor match, Saint Mary’s struggled to adjust to the conditions in dropping an 8-1 decision to Wartburg in the Cardinals’ final nonconference match of the season last Saturday in Waverly, Iowa.

• ROAD TRIP: Last Saturday’s match against Wartburg was the first of three straight road matches to close out the regular season for the Cardinals, who travel to both Bethel and St. Scholastica this week. … SMU has played just eight of its 18 matches on its home court, where they are 5-3. SMU sports a 4-6 mark away from the Winona Tennis Center.

• SINGLED OUT: Tucker Stene (Fridley, Minn.) picked up his team-leading 11th dual-match singles win against Hamline on March 25. Stene’s 11 singles wins are two more than Caden Rodning (Mason City, Iowa). Brendon Raabolle (Andover, Minn.) is third with eight dual-match victories, followed by Hietala and Janssen with seven each. … Rodning is 7-3 in his last 10 matches, and is riding a three-match winning streak.

• GOING THE DISTANCE: The Cardinals have had 23 singles contests extended to a third set this season — including three each in matches against Saint John’s, Northwestern (Minn.) and St. Norbert. … SMU is 12-11 in those 23 three-set matches. … SMU closed out the 2022 season owning a 22-23 mark in its 45 three-setters.

• CAREER FIRSTS: Philip Apel (North Oaks, Minn.) became the second Cardinal to post his first collegiate victory this season, delivering a 6-2, 6-4 win at No. 6 singles against Macalester on April 1. Apel followed that up with his second singles victory two weeks later to account for SMU’s lone tally in its 8-1 loss to Wartburg on April 15. … Rodning’s 6-4, 6-0 win at No. 6 singles against Martin Luther on Jan. 28 was his first collegiate singles victory. … Evan Huemoeller (Owatonna, Min.) posted a 7-5, 7-6 (4) win against Martin Luther on Jan. 28 in his first appearance at No. 1 singles.

• DOUBLING UP: Raabolle leads the team in doubles wins with eight, going 8-8 — including 6-5 partnered with Rodning. … Rodning and Janssen are second on the squad with seven doubles wins, followed by Hietala and Matt Besek (Winona Minn.) with six each. … Besek and Janssen are a perfect 3-0 when paired together. … SMU has used 14 different doubles combinations — including two at No. 1, six at No. 2, and seven at No. 3.

 • PERFECT DAY: Hietala and Janssen enjoyed a perfect day in the Cardinals’ nonconference wins over Albion and Adrian on Feb. 28. The duo each picked up singles wins in both matches, while teaming together for a pair of victories at No. 2 doubles. 

• TOTAL DOMINATION: With their 9-0 win over Martin Luther on Jan. 28, the Cardinals pushed their winning streak to 20 straight against the Knights. SMU has never lost to Martin Luther in program history.

• TURNING THE TABLES: The Cardinals’ win over Bethany Lutheran on Feb. 25 marked the second straight meeting with the Vikings in which the match ended with a 5-4 decision. BLC beat Saint Mary’s 5-4 a year ago.

• OUT OF THEIR LEAGUE: The Cardinals closed out 2023 7-4 in nonconference play this season and are 78-37 in non-MIAC matches since 2012. 

• NEW THIS YEAR: The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Division III Operating Committee has instituted a mandatory, no-ad scoring pilot for all of D-III tennis for the 2022-23 season. No-ad tennis matches are played as follows: If each player/team has won three points, the score is “Deuce” and a deciding point shall be played. The receiver(s) shall choose whether to receive the service from the right half or the left half of the court. In doubles, the players of the receiving team cannot change positions to receive this deciding point. The player/team who wins the deciding point wins the game.

BETHEL ROYALS SCOUTING REPORT:

• FOR THE RECORD: The Royals enter their conference showdown against Saint Mary’s sitting at 4-10 overall, including a 2-4 mark through the first six matches of the MIAC slate.

• LAST TIME OUT: The Royals were no match for league-leading Gustavus last Saturday, as the Gusties handed Bethel a 9-0 conference setback at Swanson Center in St. Peter, Minn.

• LIMPING IN: Bethel will take the courts against Saint Mary’s in the midst of a six-match losing streak — including back-to-back 9-0 losses to Macalester and Gustavus in their last two contests. … After going 3-2 in their first five contests, the Royals are just 1-8 in their last nine — the lone win a 7-2 win over Concordia (Wis.) on March 14.

• SINGLED OUT: Dylan Magistad leads the Royals in singles wins with six, one more than Brett Eliason and Robert Seaton, and two up on Ryan Ackerman and Jackson Meyer. … Magistad has collected all six of his team-leading singles wins at No. 3. … Jackson Meyer is the only Royals to have played all 14 matches at the same position, going 4-10 at No. 1 singles. … BU has used two different players at No. 2, No. 4, No. 5, and No. 6 singles, while three different Royals have lined up at No. 3.

• DOUBLING UP: Meyer and Lucas Wyly share the team lead in doubles wins with five. The duo have played all 14 matches together, going 5-9 at No. 1 doubles. … Ackerman and Seaton have each recorded four doubles wins. Ackerman has picked up two doubles wins paired with Eliason and two with Ethan Ahrar, while Seaton owns three wins teamed with Magistad and one partnered with Eliason. … BU, which is 13-29 in doubles play this season, has used three different doubles combinations at both No. 2 and No. 3.