LAKEVILLE, Minn. – For the first time in 35 tries, the University of Northwestern women's tennis team defeated its rival College of St. Scholastica, 6-3, in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Game of the Week. The Eagles not only broke a 16-year drought against the Saints, but also handed St. Scholastica, winner of 17 consecutive league championships, its first-ever conference regular season loss in the process.

Northwestern-St. Scholastica Results

UNW led 2-1 after the afternoon's three doubles matches. The Eagles' No. 1 pair of Megan Johnson (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing) and Kelly Johnson (Annandale, Minn./Annandale) picked up an 8-6 victory over St. Scholastica's Alexis Gunderson and Jessica Solbereg before Karen Moe (Fargo, N.D./Fargo South ) and Tina Matetich (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing) delivered a monumental come-from-behind rally to defeat Madeleine Scanlan and Alexa Herbst 9-8 (9-7) in the No. 2 bout. At No. 3 doubles, Northwestern's Rachel Bostrom (Forest Lake, Minn./Forest Lake) and Amber Gallaway (Annandale, Minn./Annandale) were on the losing end of an 8-1 score.

With six singles matches ahead, the Eagles needed to win at least three of them to earn the overall contest. Gallaway was good for the third point of the day as she used a 10-5 third set tiebreaker to beat Kelsey Geiger 6-0, 2-6, 1-0 (10-5). Then came Moe in the No. 2 singles match as the freshman defeated Scanlan 6-0, 6-2 before Megan Johnson (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing) sealed the deal with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Gunderson at No. 1 singles.

Bostrom was able to finish the match with a singles victory, giving Northwestern its sixth point with a 5-7, 6-3, 1-0 (10-7) rebound against Pamela Hartley in the No. 5 singles bout.

The victory is Northwestern's seventh of the season. The afternoon match was the Eagles' first of 10 UMAC regular season contests this year, with a 6 p.m. contest against North Central University waiting after the win over the Saints.

After a high stakes match against St. Scholastica, UNW wrapped up the day with a quick 9-0 sweep of North Central. Each of the three doubles matches went 8-0 0in the Eagles' favor with just two of the six singles rounds not being a 6-0, 6-0 victory in UNW's favor despite the rather easy victory.

Northwestern-North Central Results

After watching the Eagles' first match of Saturday's action, Courtney Lawler got in on the evening victory as she defeated Hannah Heinz 6-1, 6-0 in the No. 6 singles slot.

Now 8-4 overall and 2-0 to start UMAC action, Northwestern is back on the court on Monday before another Saturday's conference doubleheader next week, when the Eagles host Bethany Lutheran College and the University of Minnesota Morris on Saturday.