DULUTH, MINN. (csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica men's tennis team traveled down Highway 53 to duel the Hamline Pipers at Virginia Indoor for senior day. The Saints stayed unscathed at their alternate home courts and didn't drop a single match across all nine courts. The Saints would compete in their 2022-2023 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) tour today, going 6-3 as a team in conference play and earning the #4 seed in the prestigious 5-team MIAC playoff for the first time in program history beginning Tuesday. This is the second year Saint Scholastica has competed in the MIAC and was kept out of the playoffs after winning the UMAC title in 2021.
Doubles
The Saints claimed all 3 doubles matches but were pushed to the brink at #2 doubles when Julius Tabrizi (Frankfurt, Germany/Bischof-Neumann) and Jack Onkka (Thief River Falls, Minn.) powered through to claim an 8-7 (7-3) victory. Carter Anderson (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing HS) and Reece Patten (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS) cruised 8-4 at the third doubles position and the top doubles team of Eamon Gerrard-Stace (Brisbane, Au.) and Jonas Abeleda (Sydney, Australia/St Aloysius' College) triumphed by the same margin, 8-4. Abeleda and Gerrard-Stace finish the regular season 6-2 in the MIAC as a doubles pairing. Patten and Anderson finish 5-0, and Onkka and Tabrizi post a 6-2 MIAC regular season record as a tandem.
Singles
CSS would win on all singles courts with Abeleda posting a 6-3, 6-2 victory, finishing 6-3 in MIAC regular season play. Gerrard-Stace would race through his opponent 6-0, 6-0 on court #2 at lightning fast speed. Tabrizi glided 7-5, 6-1, and will finish his first regular season 6-2 in MIAC conference play. Carter Anderson (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing HS) was at top form, triumphing 6-1, 6-3 over his singles opposition on court No. 4. Riley Versich (Kelly Lake, Minn./Hibbing HS (Itasca CC)) was the only senior honored on the men's team today and leaves in style as the top singles wins leader for the Saints in regular season conference play this season, displaying a 7-2 record in the MIAC and winning his last regular season match as a Saint, 6-1, 7-5. Patten did not drop a single game at the sixth spot to wrap things up for the Saints, slating the 6-0,6-0 win. Patten also achieved 6 singles wins in the MIAC regular season, tying him with Abeleda and Tabrizi for second most on the team this season.
Up Next
The men will now reap their reward of earning the 4th seed and host Saint John's University on Tuesday at the Duluth Indoor Sports Center. The official match time is yet to be determined but will be roughly between 12-4 pm on Tuesday afternoon. The last time these two teams met the Saints defeated SJU 9-0 at STA fit in February. Stay tuned for official match time postings.
