ST. PAUL, Minn. – Saturday's mission was simple for the University of Northwestern Men's Tennis team. Go 2-0 on your home court and your season will continue next weekend in the UMAC Tennis Tournament. Well, mission accomplished. The Eagles swept both Crown College and Martin Luther College to leave no doubt as to who will be joining UW-Superior, Greenville and Principia at Baseline Tennis Center in Minneapolis next weekend.
Match One: Crown College Polars
Crown made UNW work to earn the doubles point. After
Griffen Jarchow (Luverne, Minn./Luverne) and
Caleb Swigart (Cottage Grove, Minn./Park) took care of business with a 6-1 win in the No. 2 match,
Caleb Jergenson (Livingston, Mont./Park) and
Sam Kettelhut (Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View) fell 3-6 at No. 3. It all came down to the No. 1 doubles match, where
Carson Haack (Elk River, Minn./Elk River) and
Sam Majerus (River Falls, Wis./River Falls) battled to a 6-4 win to go up 1-0.
Majerus began singles matches with a bang, winning 6-0, 6-0 at No. 3. After Jarchow won 6-3, 6-1 at No. 1 singles, Haack was played to a third set in the No. 1 match. The sophomore was able to prevail by a 6-2, 2-6, 6-1 margin to clinch the win for the Eagles. The icing on the cake came in the 4-6 matches. Swigart won 6-0, 6-2 at No. 4 singles, Jergenson brought home a 6-2, 6-2 win at No. 5, and
DJ Stumpf (Stillwater, Minn./Hill-Murray) earned his first collegiate singles victory with a 6-4, 6-2 decision in the No. 6 match.
Match Two: Martin Luther College Knights
The win over the Polars drew Northwestern even with Martin Luther in the UMAC standings, setting up a win-and-in scenario in the regular season finale as it pertained to the conference tournament. This time, UNW won all nine matches played to cement its spot.
Carson Haack (Elk River, Minn./Elk River) and
Sam Majerus (River Falls, Wis./River Falls) rolled to a 6-0 win at No. 1 doubles, while
Griffen Jarchow (Luverne, Minn./Luverne) and
Caleb Swigart (Cottage Grove, Minn./Park) cruised to a 6-1 victory at No. 2. In the No. 3 match,
Caleb Jergenson (Livingston, Mont./Park) and
Ian Barber (Worthington, Minn./Worthington) were able to secure a 6-3 win for the doubles sweep.
Singles matches brought about similar dominance from the purple and gold. Majerus won 6-1, 6-0 at No. 3, while Haack notched a 6-0, 6-2 win in the No. 1 spot. After Jarchow won his No. 2 match, 6-2, 6-4, Jergenson handled business at No. 5, 6-1, 6-1. At No. 4 singles, Swigart got off to a hot start and won 6-0, 6-4. To round things out, Barber brought home a 6-1, 6-4 win at No. 6 to complete the 7-0 sweep and a perfect 14-0 day across the two matches.
Up Next
The Eagles earned yet another berth in the UMAC Tennis Tournament, which will be held at Baseline Tennis Center in Minneapolis May 2
nd-3
rd. As the North Division's No. 2 seed, Northwestern will square off with South Division champion Greenville in the semifinals at 1:00 PM on Friday.
