Staff Writer- Nathan Swanson
This previous weekend, the 19th nationally ranked Men’s Tennis Team competed in two matches, winning both and improving their win streak to seven matches. Their first match was against the St. Olaf Oles, where they won 7-0, and the second match was against the Augustana University Vikings from Sioux Falls, where they won 5-2.
The team traveled to Northfield to play at St. Olaf, whereafter they returned to Gustavus to play Augustana at the Swanson Tennis Center. After winning the two matches on Saturday, the men’s tennis team is 4-0 in the MIAC and 10-5 overall. They are 4-4 at home and 6-1 when playing on the road.
“I was really proud of the team from this past weekend. It was a long weekend for our guys playing St. Olaf in the morning and Augustana right when we came back to campus, and our energy and focus didn’t waver throughout the entirety of the weekend…” Senior Tyler Haddorff said.
Against St. Olaf, the Gusties took the #1 doubles as Senior Gage Gohl and Haddorff won 6-1.
“I was proud of my composure throughout all the ups and downs in my match. Staying level-headed through the ‘rollercoaster’ of a match is something we work on relentlessly as a team, and it puts me in good positions in my matches this weekend,” Haddorff said.
Sophomores Noah Hakim and Owen Skanse were successful in the #2 doubles, winning 6-3. Concluding the doubles matches, Gustavus finished the sweep in the #3 doubles as Senior Joseph Li and Sophomore Quinn Monson won 7-5. Entering the singles matches, Gohl competed in the #1 singles, going 3-6, 6-2, 1-0 and finishing with a 10-6 victory. In the #2 singles, Junior Dominik Knutson won the match 6-2, 6-0. Hakim, who played in the #3 singles, won his match 6-3, 6-4. Monson won in the #4 singles 6-2, 6-3. In the #5 singles, Skanse won 6-0, 6-1. Finishing strong for the Gusties in the #6 singles, Yash Bahalkar won his match 6-2, 6-0. Overall, the team went an impressive 7-0 against the Oles with a clean sweep.
“Saint Olaf is a tough team to play, especially away at their own facility. They compete hard and give it everything they got on each and every point which makes it really difficult to play against…” Haddorff said.
The second match against Augustana took place later that same day, following the match against St. Olaf.
“Augustana brings a lot of energy and they have a lot of clean ball strikers that can play at a very high level…” Haddorff commented.
In the #1 doubles match, Gohl and Haddorff won 6-3. Knutson and Sophomore Takura Mhwandagara won the #2 doubles 6-3, and gained the team a point in doubles. In the #3 doubles, Hakim and Skanske finished with a 7-6 win. In the #2 singles match, Knutson won 6-1, 6-2. Knutson earned the second point for Gustavus following his victory. Haddorf won 6-4, 6-4 in the #3 singles, getting the third point for the team. In the #4 singles match, Senior Deuce Daniel secured the fourth point for the Gusties, winning 6-4, 6-4. Augustana earned two points with victories in the #1 and #6 singles matches. Finishing strong, Senior Luke Fridinger won 7-6, 6-4 in the #5 singles to get the Gusties their fifth team point and a victory against Augustana.
Looking ahead, the men’s tennis team has some exciting matches coming up. On Saturday, March 28th, the team will hit the road and split. Half of the team will be playing at Hamline University, and the other half playing at Saint Mary’s University. The game at Hamline will start at 12:30 p.m., while the Saint Mary’s game will start at 1:30 p.m.
“The biggest message for this week after the weekend was to keep stacking… We’ll get to work this week, and keep being grateful for every opportunity we have to play tennis as a team,” Haddorff said.
Then, in the second week of April, on the 10th and 11th, the team will travel across the country and compete in the Mary Washington Invitational. The invitational, which is in Fredericksburg, Virginia, is where they will face off against the Mary Washington University Eagles.