MATCH NOTES (PDF)

MARSHALL, Minn. - The Southwest Minnesota State tennis team (0-1, 0-1) will head to Sioux City, Iowa, on Saturday to take on Morningside at 2 p.m. and South Dakota at 2 p.m.

Series record:  This is the first meeting between SMSU and Morningside.  The Mustangs and South Dakota first played each other in 1980, and SMSU is currently leading the series 5-4. However, USD has won the three previous competitions between the two teams, who last met in 2007.

Last time out:  The Minnesota State, Mankato Mavericks defeat the Mustangs 5-4 last Sunday in St. Peter, Minn. Trisha Baldwin (Montevideo, Minn.) tied the match at 4-4 after she defeated Paige Burke at No. 4 singles. The match remained tied at 4-4 after Amy Daniels (Marshall, Minn.) was defeated by Heather Jensen (6-2,6-3) at No. 6 singles. Cailey Grupe (Trimont, Minn.) dropped the final, deciding bout after MSU's Brandi Dohmen rallied to win her only match point in the super-tiebreaker, making the final score 3-6, 6-2, 14-12 at No. 3 singles. SMSU fared well in doubles play, winning two of the three matches. The team of Baldwin and Grupe defeated MSU's Sarah Madigan and Kathryn Gavin (8-5) while Danielle Hilldebrandt (St. James, Minn.) and Lissa Murakami (Sao Paulo, Brazil) beat Paige Burke and Jensen (8-4).

SMSU ranked in Central Region: SMSU is ranked eighth in the ITA Central Rankings as of the end of November. Other teams from the NSIC placing in the Central region include Upper Iowa (No.3), Minnesota State (No.5), and Winona State (No.6).
    1.     Mesa State
    2.     Metro State
    3.     Upper Iowa
    4.     Nebraska-Kearney
    5.     Minnesota State
    6.     Winona State
    7.     CSU-Pueblo
    8.     SMSU

Grupe ranked in Central Region:  Junior Cailey Grupe (Trimont, Minn.) is ranked No. 15 in the ITA Central Rankings in singles.  Grupe finished last season with a 15-11 record in singles play.  She has charted a 2-2 record in singles tour play this season.

Senior momentum:  The 2010 roster features two senior in Danielle Hildebrandt (St. James, Minn.) and Amy Daniels (Marshall, Minn.) The two have been a mainstay in the SMSU lineup throughout her career, making waves in both singles and doubles play.

The coach:  The longest tenured coach currently on staff at SMSU, George Seldat enters his 16th season as head tennis coach of the Mustangs in 2010. Seldat has compiled a 76-146 overall record at SMSU.  Last season, he coached the Mustangs an overall record of 8-14 and 5-6 mark in the NSIC.

Stay connected:  Stay connected with SMSU tennis all season long at www.smsumustangs.com.  The Mustangs are also on Facebook and Twitter; just log onto www.facebook.com/smsumustangs and www.twitter.com/smsumustangs.  For the latest video highlights and new episodes of the Mustang Minute check out SMSU's official YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/user/smsuathletics.