Winona State came in with yet another dominating start to their season as they swept another win against Bemidji State on Friday, Feb. 17 at the Winona Tennis Center.  

The Warriors came to do what they needed to do in doubles, winning all three matches. While singles dropped just nine games across the six singles matches to earn their second-consecutive sweep to open Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play.  

First-year duo Miranda Daulong and Clara Thoemke opened doubles play with a 6-1 victory at No.3 doubles. Moments after, fourth-year Rachel Kelly and first-year Ally Burger settled the doubles point by winning the second position 6-1 while fourth-year Beth Murman and third-year Sara Anderson completed the matchup at No. 1 doubles.  

A great start for first-year Thoemke, as she commented “I’m excited to start playing matches in my first season here for Winona.”  

In the singles section, Sara Anderson was the first to defeat her opponent 6-1, 6-0 at the No.3 position. Soon after, Thoemke followed at No.4 singles and Rachel Kelly clinched the victory for Winona State University with a 6-0, 6-1win at No.2 singles. Murman, Burger and first-year Maddie Moe all secured straight-set victories to finish the sweep.  

With that, Winona State finishes that day with 2-0 overall and 2-0 NSIC.  

The Warriors were back in action the next day, Saturday, Feb. 18, as they played against the University of Minnesota Crookston.  

Winona State was able to effectively beat their opponents 6-1. They added their win to their NSIC victory total (3-0) by sweeping doubles play and going 5-1 in singles action.  

In doubles, the Warriors kept the doubles point with a sweep at the No.1, No.2 and No. 3 slots. Rachel Kelly and Ally Burger at No.2 doubles as Miranda Daulong, Maddie Moe won at No.3, while Sara Anderson and Beth Murman took the No.1 doubles match up by a 6-3 scoreline.  

In singles play, Kelly opened Winona’s scoring at 6-1, 6-1 at No.2. Warrior teammate Miranda Daulong accompanied her win with a 6-1, 6-0 at No.6, and then Ally Burger settled the victory at No.5 with a 6-3, 6-2 win. Shortly after, Rachel Anderson defeated her opponent at No.3 singles with a 6-1, 6-4 effort. Nevertheless, Winona’s State’s Maddie Moe was able to close the singles match as she and her opponent at No. 4 singles at 4-6, 7-5, 10-5.  

“It’s definitely nerve wracking but all around I’m excited to play at the collegiate level,” Daulong said. 

However, Minnesota Crookston avoided the sweep in No.1 singles match that went down, with Beth Murman falling to UMC’s Madeleine Schneider, 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-10.  

Last spring, Winona State defeated Bemidji State 5-2 on Feb. 18 and beat Minnesota Crookston 7-0 on Feb.19. Both contests were on the road for WSU and were part of a seven-match unbeaten run for the Warriors in the middle of the 2022 season.  

Winona State ends the weekend with a 3-0 overall and 3-0 NSIC. They step out of the conference play on Sunday, Feb. 26 in their next match, as they host the NCAA Division I opponent Northern Illinois University. The Warriors and Huskies face off at 4 p.m. at the Winona Tennis Center.