GRAND FORKS, N.D. -- The Bemidji State women’s tennis team will be holding its breath for the next 10 days after wrapping up the regular season on Friday.
The Beavers dropped two matches in Grand Forks, N.D. -- 7-0 against Augustana and 4-3 against Sioux Falls -- and sit on the fringe of the NSIC Tournament cutoff.
BSU completes the regular season 4-7 overall, with every result coming in conference play.
Bemidji State ended its match in eighth place in the standings, narrowly ahead of Upper Iowa and St. Cloud State for the final playoff spot. With just over a week to go in the regular season, the idle Beavers will hope that results around the league shake out favorably for their cause.
The NSIC Tournament field will be announced on April 19.
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On the courts Friday morning, the 10-time defending conference champion Vikings stormed away with the sweep to start the day.
Hannah Peterson and Laney Rutkowski provided the highlight of the match, winning 6-4 at No. 3 doubles, but BSU didn’t get quite enough to claim the doubles point. Still, the victory marked the first time Bemidji State has earned a singles or doubles win against Augustana since March 2009.
In the Sioux Falls match, the Cougars gained the early 1-0 edge by winning the doubles point. On the singles side, though, the Beavers almost claimed the win with a strong top-end showing.
Sophie Groen was a 6-1, 6-2 winner at the No. 1 spot, while Shaelyn Johnson made quick work of a 6-0, 6-2 victory at second singles. Claudie Billand continued the success by grinding out a 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 win at No. 3.
However, that was where the triumphs ended for BSU. USF claimed wins at Nos. 4-6 singles and, paired with the doubles point, snuck out with the narrow 4-3 win.
The single-elimination NSIC Tournament will take place April 24-25 in Sioux Falls, S.D. for the top eight teams in the conference.
