SEWARD, Neb. – In the second week of GPAC action, the Concordia University Women’s Tennis team hopes to get on the board with its first conference win of the 2022 season. The Bulldogs are aiming to bounce back from a 6-1 loss at Morningside this past weekend. Concordia will play at Mount Marty on Thursday before coming back home to host Northwestern on Saturday. Head Coach Cam Long’s squad enters this week sporting a 2-7 overall record.
This Week
Thursday, March 31 at Mount Marty (0-3, 0-3 GPAC), 1 p.m.
Saturday, April 2 vs. Northwestern (3-6, 0-0 GPAC), 11 a.m.
By the numbers
· With the loss at Morningside on March 26, the Bulldogs fell short in their attempt to avenge a 4-0 loss to the Mustangs in the 2021 GPAC semifinals. Concordia did manage to knock off Morningside, 4-3, in the 2021 regular season. The ’21 Bulldogs made history by sharing the GPAC regular season title, marking the program’s first ever conference championship. This year’s team is much different. Only two of the six players from the lineup used in the 2021 GPAC tournament lineup remain on the active roster.
· In doubles action this past week, Morningside won by 6-2 scores at the Nos. 2 and 3 spots. The Bulldog duo of Sofia Morales and Tessa Blough was narrowly defeated at No. 1, 7-5. A native of Bogotá, Colombia, Morales is hoping to prove she’s one of the very best in the GPAC. She went head-to-head with the Mustangs’ Emily Clotfelter at No. 1 and emerged with a 6-3, 6-3, victory. Morningside came out on top in the Nos. 2 through 6 spots, which were held down in the Concordia lineup by Blough, Tara Ferrel, Brooke Hosick, Megan Hakes and Kylie Freudenburg, in that order. At No. 4, Hakes nearly forced a super tiebreaker in a 6-0, 7-5, decision.
· Morales also edged Clotfelter last season. Morales went 8-7 in singles last season and is now 4-5 this season. She was immediately thrust into a role at the top of the lineup as a freshman in 2021. Morales owns a career GPAC singles record of 6-2. Morales and Tara Ferrel are by far the most experienced players in the lineup. Ferrel went 4-12 in singles last season while playing mostly at the No. 3 position. Freshmen Tessa Blough, Kylie Freudenburg and Brooke Hosick have played key roles in 2022 for the new-look Bulldogs.
· While Morales owns four singles wins this season, three of her teammates have collected two singles wins: Blough, Ferrel and Hakes. The best results in doubles have come from the duo of Hosick and Julia Phillips, who have combined to go 3-2. Overall as a team, Concordia is 17-37 in singles and 7-20 in doubles matches.
· The schedule this week includes two conference opponents the Bulldogs defeated by 7-0 scores last season: Mount Marty and Northwestern. The Lancers have opened conference play with losses to Morningside, Midland and Hastings. Meanwhile, the Red Raiders will open conference play at Midland on Friday. Northwestern owns three nonconference wins with them coming over three NCAA Division III opponents: Buena Vista University (Iowa), Wartburg College (Iowa) and Simpson College (Iowa).
Next week
Conference action will continue next week with a trip to Hastings on April 6 and then a home match versus reigning GPAC champion Midland on April 9.