The Johnnies kick off the tennis season this weekend with two home matches

Saint John’s Tennis will open the 2023 season with two home matches this weekend in Sartelli at Sta-Fit starting at 1:00 PM in a conference tilt against St. Scholastica on Saturday, February 18. The Johnnies then host Bethany Lutheran at 1 p.m. Sunday, February 19.

SEE JOHANNES: Saint John’s finished fifth in the MIAC last spring with a 6-3 record (10-7 overall). The four Johnnies earned a total of six 2022 All-MIAC honors and Jack Bowe was named MIAC Steve Wilkinson Coach of the Year for the third time in his career (2003, 2019).

Seniors Peyton Fischer (Spicer, Minn./Willmar) and Wil McDowell (Sioux Falls, SD/O’Gorman) earned the honor in singles, while Fischer, McDowell, Sr. Hunter Fischer (Spicer, Minn./Willmar) and a sophomore Ryan Will (Northfield, Minn.) achieved the distinction in doubles.

The doubles and doubles honors are the second in a row for McDowell, who was also named to the MIAC All-Sportsmanship team. She finished 5-9 in singles, including a 5-8 record (4-4 MIAC) at No. 1. In doubles, McDowell and Hunter Fischer posted a 5-6 record (4-4 MIAC), winning five of their last six matches at No. 1.

Peyton Fischer achieved All-MIAC status with a 5-4 MIAC record (5-11 overall, 4-8 at No. 2) and teamed with Will to lead SJU’s doubles tandems with an 11-5 record (6-3 MIAC), 7 -4 at No. 2 and 3-0 at #1.

IN AUTUMN: Eight Johnnies competed in the 2022 ITA Midwest Regional and Midwest Open from Sept. 30-Oct. 1 in Mankato and St. Peter.

Two-sport student-athlete (hockey and tennis), sophomore Cooper Anderson (St. Paul, Minn./White Bear Lake) went 1-1 in singles at the ITA Regional, while five other Johnnies all lost their first match. All three doubles tandems ended 0-1.

Freshman Taylor Duncan (Benson, Minn.) and senior Joe Dwyer (Hibbing, Minn.) suffered an 8-6 loss in their first doubles match at the Midwest Open. Friday’s rain changed the Midwest Open singles scoring to match doubles (one set, first to eight). Duncan won 1-1 and Dwyer 0-1.

WHAT NEXT: The Johnnies will follow this weekend’s home games with five spring break Florida (Orlando area):

– Sunday, March 5: Saint Vincent (Pa.)
– Tuesday, March 7: Hampden-Sydney (Va.) and Covenant (Ga.)
– Thursday, March 9: Piedmont (Ga.)
-Friday, March 10: Division II Cedarville (Ohio)

REVIEW OF THE SAINTS: St. Scholastica (1-4, 0-3 MIAC) enters Saturday’s game riding a three-game losing streak, including a 9-0 loss last Saturday (Feb. 11) at home to No. 17 Gustavus Adolphus. Sophomore Jonas Abeleda returns to CSS posted an 8-6 (5-4 MIAC) singles record last spring for a No. 1 and No. 2 team that finished 5-10 (3-6 MIAC). Abeleda and freshman Eamon Gerrard-Stace and freshman tandem Jack Onkka and Julius Tabrizi are 2-2 (1-1 MIAC) in doubles so far this spring.

LAST SPRING: SJU opened the 2022 season with a 6-3 road win over St. Scholastica last February 12 (2022) at the Virginia Indoor Tennis Center in Virginia. CSS won Nos. 1 and 2 singles and No. 1 doubles, but SJU posted wins in six other matches.

Peyton Fischer and Will won 8-5 in doubles and junior duo Will Deters (Minneapolis, Minn./Wayzata) and Mark Rosen (Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson) gave SJU a 2-1 lead after the doubles match and a convincing 8-2 victory at No. 3.

Rosen won in straight sets at No. 3 singles (6-3, 7-5) and Will followed suit at No. 4 thanks to a second-set tie (6-3, 7-6). /7-3).

Mike Krasowski and junior Daniel Perez (Quito, Ecuador) finished the match with wins at numbers 5 and 6 in singles. Krasowski lost a close 7-6 (12-10) in the first set, but fought back for a 6-1 decision in the second and a 10-7 victory in the super-breaker.

Hunter Fischer and McDowell suffered an 8-7 (7-3) loss at No. 1 doubles.

SERIES HISTORY: The Johnnies are 26-3 against the Saints since 1992, including wins in 14 of their last 16 games. The two losses came in 2014 (6-3 at Duluth) and 2017 (5-4 at Virginia).

SEE THE VIKINGS: Bethany Lutheran (2-1, 0-0 UMAC) defeated Cornell (Iowa) 5-4 in its first game of the spring last Saturday (Feb. 11) in Owatonna. Vikings won 5-4 in Wartburg (Iowa) and lost 7-2 in Hamline in September 1-1. Junior Marcos Borobia Arias went 9-5 (6-2 UMAC), including an 8-4 mark at No. 2 singles, and posted a 12-2 record (8-0 UMAC) at No. 1 doubles last spring. Sophomore Heitor Damaso was 8-6 (4-3 UMAC) and 7-5 at No. 3 singles, while sophomore Caue Ribeiro was 7-7 (5-3 UMAC) over 4-5. BLC finished 7-8 (4-4 UMAC) last season and travels today (Friday, February 17) to face NAIA Mount Marty (SD) before Sunday’s trip to Sartell. Sunday’s match will be the first match between the Johnnies and Vikings on the tennis court.