MATCH NOTES (PDF)

MARSHALL, Minn. - The Southwest Minnesota State tennis team (1-2, 0-1 NSIC) will take on Northwestern (Iowa) (1-0) at 6 p.m. in St. Cloud, Minn., on Friday  and play Upper Iowa (2-0, 1-0 NSIC) in Owatonna, Minn., at 4 p.m. on Sunday.

Series records:  SMSU has played Northwestern once in 2002; the Mustangs hold 1-0 advantage in the series.  Sunday will be the fourth meeting between SMSU and Upper Iowa in a series that began in 2007.  The Peacockscurrently hold the lead in the series, 3-1, but the Mustangs won the last match-up 5-4 in 2009 during the NSIC Championships.

Last time out: The Mustangs played against Morningside College and South Dakota on Sunday, picking up their first win  against Morningside College, 8-1, in  Sioux City, Iowa. USD defeated the Mustangs 6-3.  SMSU was led by freshman Lissa Murakami (Sao Paulo, Brazil) who won both her matches from her No. 1 singles spot over USD's Melanie Rockne (6-4, 6-0) and Kate Nelson of Morningside (6-2, 6-0). Trisha Baldwin (Montevideo, Minn.) also fared well for the Mustangs, winning both her bouts against Brittney Smith of USD (6-2, 6-4) and Dani Bies of Morningside (6-2, 6-2). Baldwin and duo partner Cailey Grupe (Trimont, Minn.) took home two more wins in doubles play, defeating USD's team of Melanie Rockne and Brittney Smith 8-5 and Morningside's Kate Nelson and Britt de Visser, 8-3.

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 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 their careers, 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.?