The UMD women's tennis team took the court for the first time in two weeks today, getting a resounding 7-0 win over Upper Iowa and losing to Winona State 5-2. The Bulldogs now stand at 4-6 this season.

The team showed a dominating performance in the early match against Upper Iowa. They opened with a doubles sweep in all three positions. Shay Callaway and Mallory Lithun moved up from their usual No. 2 position into the No. 1 spot and handled the jump with ease, besting their opponents 6-2. Natalie Cahill and Isabel Thiner, playing in the No. 2 spot, would take the Bulldogs' only loss of the match, dropping a tight matchup 6-7 (5-7). The No. 3 pair of Emily Rahrick and Abby Johnson would win 6-2.

In singles, Sophie Lynch would play in the No. 1 spot and take the win over her opponent, winning 5-2 in the first set and winning by default in the second. No. 2 Natalie Cahill would pull out the win, going 6-7, 6-7, (3-7), 10-9. Mallory Lithun played in the No. 3 spot today, winning 7-5, 7-6, (7-3). 

Freshman Shay Callaway would again play in the No. 4 position and pull out a commanding 6-0, 6-0 win. No. 5 Emily Rahrik also bested her opponent 6-0, 6-0, and Isabel Thiner, in the No. 6 position, won 6-0, 6-1. 

Sophomore Mallory Lithun was proud of her team's effort after the first match and optimistic about the rest of the season: "We came out and battled hard today as a team and we pulled out a really nice win. I'm proud of how we played today and look forward to continuing to thrive as a player and team and go strong into the conference tournament!"

UMD brought out the same doubles lineup in their second match of the day, this one against Winona State. The No. 1 pair of Shay Callaway and Mallory Lithun won their match 6-4 and had UMD's only win of the doubles. No. 2 Isabel Thiner and Natalie Cahill lost to their Warriors counterparts 3-6, while the No. 3 pair of Abby Johnson and Emily Rahrick lost 2-6.

In singles, UMD would pick up two wins while Winona State would take the remaining four. Sophie Lynch, playing in her typical No. 1 position, lost 6-0, 6-1, while No. 2 Natalie Cahill lost 6-3, 6-3. Mallory Lithun battled hard and took her opponent to a third set, but ultimately fell 6-7 (3-7), 7-5, 6-7 (5-7).

Freshman Shay Callaway played in the No. 4 position, winning 7-5, 6-3. No. 5 Emily Rahrik battled hard for three sets but fell 3-6, 6-2, 2-6. No. 6 Isabel Thiner won the Bulldogs' other singles match of the day, winning 7-6 (7-5), 6-2.

Callaway extended her match win streak to eight with today's two wins. She noted that "everyone lef ttheir all out on the court. Today we saw what we are and can be capable of and we will be using that as a stepping stone moving forward. For a long day of tennis, everyone kept the battle going and fought until the very end. Today has been one of my favorite days of the season because of this!"

With the win over Upper Iowa in today's first match, the Bulldogs have now clinched a spot in the NSIC Tournament, a point of pride for Head Coach Jessica Worden. "Today was fantastic from start to finish," Worden said. "It was one of the first days we played solid tennis consistently in doubles and singles in back-to-back matches. To clinch a place at the conference tournament with a 7-0 win over Upper Iowa was a great feeling for the team. Our match against Winona State was our most high-energy, hardest-fought of the season, and it was the second of the day! There are no words to express how proud I am of the hard work these ladies brought today."

The Bulldogs will return home for one last regular season match, next Friday, April 16th, hosting St. Cloud State University. UMD will head to Sioux Falls for the NSIC Tournament on April 22nd and 23rd.

For the full season schedule, click here.