SIOUX FALLS – The University of Sioux Falls Tennis Team (3-0, 2-0 NSIC) will look to sustain early season momentum and a 3-0 start as the Cougars face Minnesota State (8-2, 2-0 NSIC) at 4 pm on Saturday, Feb. 19 and against Southwest Minnesota State (8-1, 2-0 NSIC) at 7 am on Sunday, Feb. 20 in Owatonna, Minn.

Last weekend the Cougars moved to 3-0 on the season with a 2-0 mark in league play after a pair of 5-2 win in NSIC play against Minnesota Duluth and St. Cloud State. 

Quick Season Review - Cougars beat Morningside, 6-1
The Cougars opened the season with a 6-1 nonconference win against Morningside College on Feb. 6. In the match up, USF won five singles matches in six played while sweeping doubles. The victory was the 79^th by Grebin in the DII era with his team owning 54 league wins in that time.

At No. 1 singles senior Megan Quandt rallied to defeat Emily Clotfelter, 4-6, 6-1, 10-7 while sophomore Danielle Thorfinnson, senior Joelle Thorfinnson and freshmen Emily Thinnsen and Katelyn Nesheim all recorded straight set wins. Quandt/Talia Janos opened the season with a dominating 6-1 win at No. 1 doubles while D. Thorfinnson/J. Thorfinnson recorded a 6-4 win at No. 2 and Thinnsen/Nesheim also won, 6-1, at No. 3 doubles.

Cougars register consecutive 5-2 wins over UMD and SCSU for 2-0 league start
In the 5-2 win over SCSU, the Cougars were led by senior Megan Quandt, who is now 3-0 (2-0 NSIC) at No. 1 singles and also 3-0 (2-0 NSIC) in No. 1 doubles with Talia Janos. Quandt, who was a combined 4-0 in singles and doubles this weekend, registered a 6-3, 6-1 win over Arisa Kashima of SCSU. She also took a straight set win over Mallory Luthin of UMD, 6-2, 6-4 and paired with Talia Jano for a 6-3 win at No. 1 doubles.

Janos also recorded a straight set win in singles with a 7-5, 6-3 decision over Paz Aoki. Janos improved to 1-2 on the season and 1-1 in league play at No. 2 singles.

Also against SCSU, USF also had wins in singles at No. 3 and No. 6. Danielle Thorfinnson registered a 6-3, 6-1 win at No. 3 singles over Johana Brower of SCSU to move to 3-0 (2-0 NSIC) on the season. Katelyn Nesheim picked up a 7-6 (7-5), 6-2 win over Samantha Fitzpatrick at No. 6 singles. Both Thorfinnson and Nesheim also had wins  in straight sets against UMD. Danielle Thorfinnson and her sister Joelle Thorfinson earned a win over UMD, 6-1 but loss to SCSU, 6-4 to fall to 3-1 on the season.

Nesheim is now 3-0 at No. 6 singles after two straight wins in straight sets against UMD and SCSU. Nesheim and Thinnsen, who is 2-1 this season at No. 5 singles, have a 3-0 mark at No. 2 doubles after consecutive 6-4 wins last weekend. 

Opponents – Series Records
Minn State, which is directed by Head Coach Ryan Kucera, has opened the year with an 8-2 mark and have won five straight matches. They also have gone 2-0 in NSIC competition with a 5-2 win over Bemidji State and a 7-0 verdict of Minnesota Crookston.  Overall, MSU has a 60-37 mark in singles for a .619 winning percentage and stand 10-2 in NSIC play. 

In the all-time series, USF holds a 5-4 lead which includes a 7-0 win on Feb. 27, 2021 in Sioux Falls. USF owns a four match winning streak (7-0, 6-1, 7-0, 6-3) over the past theee seasons. MSU's last win was a 9-0 victory on Feb. 12, 2017 at the Huether Family Matche Pointe in Sioux Falls. The win was MSU's fourth straight dating to 2015. The Cougars won the first match played in the NSIC era, 5-4, at Sioux Empire Fitness in Sioux Falls, S.D.  

At 7 am, on Sunday, Feb. 20, USF will face SMSU, which has opened 8-1 and 2-0 in th NSIC. The Mustangs opened the NSIC on Feb. 12 with a 4-3 win over Bemidji State and 6-1 verdict of Minnesota Crookston in Owatonna, Minn. SMSU is directed by third year Head Coach Jon Parker.  So far, the Mustangs have a 49-32 overall record in singles with a 8-4 conference mark. They are 36-18 in doubles. 

In the all-time series, USF leads, 8-2, but SMSU won the last matchup, 5-2, on April 16, 2021 at the Huether Family Matche Pointe in Sioux Falls, S.D. Prior to that setback, USF has eight straight wins dating from March 1, 2020 (7-0) to a 7-2 win over SMSU on March 24, 2013 in Fargo, ND. SMSU won the first match of the series, 6-3, on April 22, 2009 while USF was an NAIA program.  

Breaking it down – Look at USF Tennis
The Cougars, which had a 7-6 overall mark with a 7-4 league finish in 2021, is a veteran team with a number of talented newcomers in the fold. USF was picked to finish seventh in the NSIC Preseason Coaches Poll. At 3-0 this season with a 2-0 league mark, USF has a 13-5 mark in singles and 13-5 record in duals with a 8-4 league mark. In doubles, USF is 8-1 overall, 8-1i n duals and 5-1 in league. 

After recording a second straight winning season &-6, 7-4 NSIC) and the fifth in the DII era in 2021, USF has won at least five matches in the nine tennis seasons in the NSIC. Of that total, USF has six winning NSIC records.

As the season gets underway, USF will be a deep and veteran team with numerous talented newcomers. Leading the way will be USF's Player to Watch senior Joelle Thorfinnson, who will play No. 4 singles and No. 2 doubles. Thorfinnson, who was the program's first-ever CoSIDA Academic All-District VII honoree, is a three time Academic All-NSIC recipient and a three-time ITA Academic honoree. With a 35-17 career mark and 25-12 in the NSIC, Thorfinnson, along with senior Megan Quandt, has led USF Tennis to a 37-27 overall record, three NSIC Tournament appearances and a 26-13 league mark during her time at USF.

Quandt (23-11 singles, 28-33 doubles) also is a three-time Academic All-NSIC honoree. Sophomore Talia Janos (4-9 singles, 9-5 doubles) will be at No. 2 with Danielle Thorfinnson  (9-4 singles, 7-6 doubles) set at No. 3 but playing No. 2 doubles with her sister. Freshmen Emily Thinnsen will be at No. 5 singles and stands 2-1, 1-1 in the NSIC while Katelyn Nesheim (3-0, 2-0 NSIC), will play at No. 6 singles. Thinnsen and Nesheim will be USF's No. 3 doubles squad and stand 3-0, 2-0 NSIC.