DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica women's tennis team will begin its season with a three-match weekend.
 
Where:
Friday
Arrowhead Tennis Center – Duluth, Minn.
Saturday
Lifetime Fitness – Bloomington, Minn.
Sunday
Lifetime Fitness – Lakeville, Minn.
 
When:
Friday vs. Minnesota-Duluth – 7 p.m.
Saturday at North Central – 4 p.m.
Sunday at Macalester – 4:30 p.m.
 
Social Media:
Twitter: www.twitter.com/CSSsaints
Instagram: www.instagram.com/csssaints
Facebook: www.facebook.com/css.saints
 
St. Scholastica Saints
Roster | 2015 Stats
2015 Record: 13-11, 6-2 UMAC
Upper Midwest Athletic Conference: Standings | Stats
 
Key Returners:
-Madeleine Scanlan (St. Albans, England /Loreto College) – Two-time All-UMAC selection … Tied for second on the team with 12 singles and 14 doubles wins last season.
-Jessica Solberg (Bemidji, Minn. /Bemidji HS) – Returns after missing last season due to studying abroad … Was an All-UMAC choice in 2014 and led the team with 17 singles victories, while finishing second on the team with 16 doubles wins.
-Daniela Rojas (Monterrey, Mexico /Universidad Tecmilenio) – All-UMAC selection … Tied for second on team with 14 doubles victories.
-Sarah Coryell (Golden Valley, Minn. /Armstrong HS) – Led the team with 16 singles wins last season.
 
Key Losses:
-Alexis Gunderson (Virginia, Minn./Virginia HS) – Four-time All-UMAC selection … Became the seventh player in program history to record 50 career singles victories and the fifth player to record at least doubles victories … Finished tied for the second-most total wins in program history (106).
-Miki Samz (Savage, Minn. /Burnsville HS) – All-UMAC choice … Led the team with 15 doubles wins.
 
Coach Patten: Head Coach Wells Patten enters his 20^th season guiding the women's tennis team … Under Patten's direction, the Saints have won 18 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) regular season championships and 17 UMAC Tournament titles … Coach Patten has produced nine UMAC Player of the Year athletes in the past 12 years.
 
NCAA Tournament Appearance: The Saints made their fourth NCAA Division III Tournament appearance last season, despite not winning the UMAC regular season or tournament title for the first time since the joining the league in 1997 … CSS saw its season end to No. 22 Whitman College (Wash.) in the first round of the tournament.

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Top 5 Matches to Watch
2/5 – vs. Minnesota-Duluth
Coach Patten will face former Saint and new UMD Head Coach Jessica (Rich) Worden in the season opener.
2/13 vs. St. Olaf
The Saints have never beaten the Oles in three previous meetings
2/21 – at Carleton
The Knights placed third in the MIAC last season and won the last two meetings.
2/27 – vs. Northwestern
The Eagles are the reigning UMAC champions and are the only conference team to ever beat the Saints.
4/10 – at UW-Eau Claire
The Saints have dropped three straight to the Blugolds.

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UMAC Preseason Poll
T1. 23 Points – College of St. Scholastica (3 First Place Votes)
T1. 23 Points – University of Northwestern (3)
3.   14 Points – Bethany Lutheran College
4.   13 Points – Martin Luther College
5.   12 Points – University of Minnesota Morris
6.    5 Points – North Central University

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Upcoming Opponents
Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs
2015 Record: 5-11, 4-7 NSIC
 
The Bulldogs will be led by new head coach Jessica Worden … Worden is former CSS player under Coach Patten … Jessica (Rich) was named the UMAC Player of the Year in 2007, recorded 97 total victories as a Saint, the fourth-most all-time … The Bulldogs return seven letterwinners from last year's squad, including junior Kaitlin Wohnoutka, who was 9-7 in singles play last season.
 
North Central Rams
2015 Record: 0-8, 0-10 UMAC
 
The Rams have not won a match since the 2009 season and are already off to a 0-1 start after falling to the University of Northwestern last weekend … Amber Wolff and Allegra Edwards both return ... They teamed up for a victory at No.1 doubles last season.
 
Macalester Scots
2015 Record: 5-12, 1-9 MIAC
 
The Scots finished 10^th in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) a season ago … Macalester will have to replace its top two singles players from a season ago … Sophomore Lily Stein had 10 victories at No. 3 and 4 singles last season and also had 10 wins at No. 2 doubles … The Scots are picked to finish ninth in this year's MIAC Preseason Coaches' poll.
 
Series Histories:
-UMD leads CSS 8-7
-CSS leads North Central 14-0
-Macalester leads CSS 4-2
 
Last Meetings: The Saints have won seven straight against Minnesota-Duluth, including a 7-2 victory last year … CSS is 14-0 all-time against North Central, having never lost an individual match to the Rams … The Saints last played Macalester in 2004 and have won the last two meetings.

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Looking Ahead: The Saints will be at St. Olaf College on Saturday, February 13.