MacKenzie Kush/ Winonan

After falling to Carleton College 6-3 in its first meet of the season on Feb. 1, Winona State University women’s tennis team returned with three straight victories in the weeks to come.

Against Carleton, freshman Justine Daane won for No. 3 singles, coming from behind with a 10-6 victory in her final match.

No. 1 doubles for Winona State won 8-4 consisting of sophomore Aimee Basinski and junior Brianna Havelka.

Daane and senior Leah Dahl won No. 2 doubles, earning an 8-6 victory.

Head coach Heather Pierce said she is aware she has a young team, and the goal for the season is to “increase confidence on the court.”

“We’re taking a fun approach into developing their games and making it an enjoyable and competitive experience that will progress into the upcoming years,” Pierce said.

The Warriors snagged two wins as they opened their NSIC season at home Feb. 14, winning 7-2 over Bemidji State and 9-0 over University of Minnesota Crookston.

Against Bemidji State, Winona State doubles and singles both had several strong performances.

Warriors No. 1 doubles team of Basinski and Havelka won 8-4.

Havelka, No. 1 singles, won 6-3 and 6-1. Daane, at No. 2 singles, earned the 10-5 victory in the final set.

Pierce said, as a team, a major highlight thus far has been their performance in close matches, and they have won a majority of the matches that have gone into third set super tiebreakers.

Dahl earned wins of 6-2 and 6-0 at No. 3 singles.

Against Minnesota Crookston, Winona State earned their second overall win of the night.

Havelka recorded 6-1 and 6-2 wins, Daane with 6-0 and 6-3 victories, and sophomore Katie Scruggs and freshman Ellyn Grossen both came away with 6-0 and 6-1 wins.

Dahl and Lauren Willkom dominated singles with 6-0 victories.

Each doubles team for the Warriors recorded 8-0 wins.

“So far, our doubles play has been a strength for us. We only have one team returning from last year, so the other combinations are all new,” Pierce said. “From what we have seen so far, the combinations have come together well. The pairs seem to be clicking well and learning quickly what works for them.”

The Warriors hosted Southwest Minnesota State Saturday night and Minnesota State Mankato Sunday morning at the Winona Tennis Center.

Havelka said they did really well as a team, and especially the ones that had to change up the doubles line.

Winona State beat the Mustangs on Saturday, 7-2.

No. 1 doubles of Basinski and Havelka won 8-5, and Daane and Scruggs, No. 2 doubles, earned another win with a score of 8-1.

Willkom and Grossen fell 9-7 at No. 3 doubles.

The Warriors dominated at singles with Basinski recording scores of 6-3, and 6-1 at No. 1 and Havelka winning 6-3 and 6-2 at No. 2.

Havelka said, “I think I did well with ball movement and being able to change up the pace of the ball often, but I think I could improve on hitting the ball deeper more consistently.”

“I felt mediocre on both Saturday and Sunday in singles. My shot selection during singles could use some improvement,” Basinski said. “I look forward to improving my singles record as the season continues.”

Daane earned 6-2, and 6-3 wins at No. 3 singles, and Scruggs won both matches 6-3 at the No. 4 spot.

Grossen fell 6-4 in both matches at No. 5 singles, but Willkom recorded scores of 6-2 and 6-0 at No. 6 singles.

The Warriors were defeated by Minnesota State Sunday morning, 7-2.

“Unfortunately, it wasn’t our day Sunday against Mankato,” Pierce said. “If just a few matches had gone the other way, the result would have been different. We had opportunities in a few matches, but came up short.”

Basinski and Havelka claimed another No. 1 doubles victory winning 6-4, and were the only doubles team to win on Sunday.

Pierce said the team was missing a member of their line up, Dahl, which forced changes in their doubles teams and higher positions in singles, but the girls rose to the occasion with confidence and ease.

“I’m proud of mine and Aimee’s teamwork in doubles throughout the tournament” Havelka.

Basinski added, “We played our game and had fun with it, which is when we play our best. I look forward to continuing an amazing doubles season with [Brianna].”

Daane pulled away with a victory at No. 3 singles winning 6-4, falling 4-6, but rallied 11-9 to win the match.

Havelka said the team looks forward to playing in warm weather over spring break on March 8 and 9 in Orlando, Fla.

Pierce said the matches overall went well, and the highlight of the weekend was the team’s performance against Southwest Minnesota State.

“As the season continues, I look forward to our girls coming together as a team and growing into a more competitive mindset,” Pierce said. “I think these two things will help us reach our team’s potential.”

Winona State will hit the road this weekend to take on University of Minnesota Duluth and St. Cloud State on Saturday.