The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference women's tennis coaches forecast a 10th-place finish for the University of Minnesota Duluth tennis team in 2022 according to their preseason poll, which was released today. 

Augustana University was picked as the team to beat again this spring as the Vikings garnered 11 first-place votes (head coaches are not allowed to vote for their own team) and 121 points. They were followed by Winona State University, who received the last remaining first-place vote (102 pts.), the University of Mary (89 pts.), Southwest Minnesota State (82 points), Minnesota State (70 pts.), MSU-Moorhead (69 pts.), Bemidji State (60 pts.), Sioux Falls (60 pts.), Upper Iowa (51 pts.), UMD (47 pts.), St. Cloud State (30 pts.), and Minnesota Crookston (11 pts.).

This year's team will look to build upon the seventh place finish in the NSIC in 2021. UMD welcomes back two sophomores, a junior, and a fifth year senior from a team that posted a 5-7 overall record and a seventh place finish in the final NSIC standings at 5-6. The Bulldogs have reached the NSIC conference tournament in four consecutive seasons.



The Bulldogs return one of their top performers from the 2021 season in sophomore, Shay Callaway. Callaway led the Bulldogs with 10 wins (9 NSIC wins). Coach Worden had this to say about Callaway: "Her on court work ethic is comparable to none. It has been a pleasure to see her grow on and off the court. I am extremely excited to see her growth continue this year and for the rest of her college career." As a unit the Bulldogs enter the season with their largest roster since 2017. The flexibility for match-ups will provide the Bulldogs with a chance to see their returning players set the tone. The Bulldogs will rely on fifth year senior Isabel Thiner (who finished 6-5 last season in singles) and junior Mallory Lithun (who finished 5-7 in singles last season). The Bulldogs also return their top doubles leader in sophomore Abby Johnson who went 9-3 overall and 8-2 in conference play. 

"This year will be one of the most exciting seasons in recent memory for UMD tennis," said head coach Jessica Worden. "We have a larger roster this year which provides us more opportunities to try new things. The team atmosphere is what I look forward to the most! Our fall season was filled with hard work, endless support, and laughter." 

The Bulldogs will open the 2022 season on February 4th with a match against St. Scholastica at the Duluth Indoor Sports Center at 2 p.m.