BISMARCK, ND – Local tennis fans will get their first – and one of the few – looks at the 2017 University of Mary squad this weekend when the Marauders host a pair of Northern Sun matches. Mary first faces Sioux Falls on Saturday before challenging Augustana this Sunday, Feb. 18-19.
 
Game time against both the Cougars and the Vikings is 1 PM at Bismarck's Capital Racquet and Fitness Center.
 
Due to a scheduling quirk, Mary plays just three of its 16 regular season matches at home, and two come this weekend. The Marauders only other home match is March 18 against MSU Moorhead.
 
Senior co-captains Catherine Gibbens and Merideth Holt lead a veteran Marauders squad that saw five upperclassmen in the lineup last weekend, in addition to a sophomore and two freshmen.
 
Mary opened up the season with a pair of close matches, falling 5-4 to Minnesota Duluth on Saturday and 6-3 against St. Cloud State on Sunday, a day two super tiebreakers went against the Marauders.
 
The Marauders #3 doubles team had a strong start to the season. Sophomore Lisa Anderson and junior Shanna Stevenson joined forces to win a pair of matches. Holt and freshman Lucia Bolibruch split their matches as Mary went 3-3 in doubles.
 
Eileen Leong was on the winning side of both her singles matches. The junior won the opener in straight sets against the Bulldogs and took a second match against SCSU when her Huskies opponent was forced to withdraw in the second set after Leong had already captured the first.
 
Gibbens and freshman Danielle Wolf also picked up wins in the opening weekend.
 
Mary has a strong challenge in front of them. Sioux Falls is 3-1 overall and 1-1 in NSIC action after finishing last year 12-8 overall. Augustana is 3-1 and 2-0 already this year and has won 79 straight Northern Sun regular season matches.
 
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