It's been more than three weeks since the St. Scholastica men's tennis team played a match so Saturday afternoon's conference opener against visiting Northwestern College could have been a big deal for the Saints.

 

As it turned out, neither the layoff nor the Eagles posed any problems as the defending UMAC champion Saints thrashed the 2007 runner-up Eagles by a 9-0 score in the Burns Wellness Commons.

 

Three wins in three doubles matches got St. Scholastica (7-8, 1-0 UMAC) off on the right foot.

 

In singles action, not one Saints lost a set, all six winning in straight sets with the closest score of any match coming at No. 3 singles where Nemanja Radosevic (New Belgrade, Serbia/Duluth Central HS) took a 6-4, 6-2 win over Northwestern's Jeremiah Schneck.

 

Dillon Sterle (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing HS) picked up two wins in the match with victories at No. 1 singles and at No. 1 doubles where he partnered with Peter Sparby (North Oaks, Minn./Mounds View HS) who added his own win taking the No. 4 singles match.

 

Ryan LaCoursiere (Thief River Falls, Minn./Lincoln HS) was another double-winner for the Saints earning wins at No. 6 singles and with teammate Will Ruckel (Anoka, Minn./Anoka Senior HS) at No. 3 doubles.

 

The conference victory pushes St. Scholastica's all-time record within the UMAC to a perfect 59-0. The loss drops Northwestern's season mark to 0-11 and 0-1 in the UMAC.