The Women’s Tennis team began its season last Tuesday. The players have had a positive outlook on the upcoming matches, and the team seems to be off to a confident start.

“I think we have already made great strides towards becoming a better tennis team in the first week of practice,” Senior Captain Heather Annis said.

The fall season kicks off this upcoming week with a lot of great competition. The women will have their first match of the 2012-13 school year at the Gopher Invite. The Invitational is held Sept. 14 through Sept. 15 at the University of Minnesota.

“The competition at the U of M tournament is always great. We see plenty of D1 and D2 matchplay,” Senior Captain Mallory Shellum said.

Following the Gopher invite, the team will be hosting ITA Midwest Regional Championships from Sept. 22 through Sept. 24.

“Our ITA’s in the fall also produce great competition and a good look into our conference opponents that we will be seeing in the spring,” Shellum said.

A new competition the Gusties will be taking part in this year is the Rushmore open, which will be taking place in Rapid City, South Dakota. The event will take place from Sept. 29 to Sept. 30.

Another addition that will be closing out the season in Octo-ber is the Augustana invite. This invitational will take place in Sioux Falls, South Dakota from Oct. 13 to Oct. 14. With great weather conditions, the team has been able to get on the courts as often as possible. The women have been competitive amongst one another during practices to effectively prepare themselves for the upcoming competition.

“Each day, the girls have been working on certain areas of their game and they have been improving every day. It has been exciting so far for the girls to get

to know one another and work together to accomplish a set goal,” Senior and Volunteer Assistant Coach Megan Born.

With five returning players and six first-years, the team was not sure what to expect. With more than half of the team being new athletes, the team is pretty small, but is able to bond on and off the courts.

“The most exciting part of the fall season is meeting the first-years and starting to mold our team together because they bring new personalities and talent. We are a pretty small team, so we get to know each other really well, really fast,” Annis said.

With fall competition right around the corner, the Women’s Tennis team has spent long hours on the court working to represent Gustavus in the best way they can, together as a team.

“Teamwork can really lead us anywhere we want to go.  Our goals are only attainable as a team and it’s always exciting to look back and realize how much we grew together as a team and on a personal level,” Shellum said.

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