MANDAN, ND - The University of Mary tennis team hosts their first home contest of the season as they welcome Minnesota State University Moorhead to the Mandan Tennis Center on Saturday, February 24, at 1 pm.

LAST WEEK
The Marauders picked up two huge wins last weekend. UMary (2-0, 2-0 Northern Sun) kicked things off by defeating Winona State University 6-1 and then won a huge match 4-3 over Minnesota State University, Mankato.

Hala Hossam Awad clinched the victory for the Marauders over MSU in clutch fashion after she fell behind in the first set. Awad defeated Freia Lawrence 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 in #2 singles.

Chloe Chong went undefeated in both of her matches in #1 singles. Awad and Maria Estinvil went unbeaten in singles competition and in doubles competition.

OPPO RESEARCH – MSU MOORHEAD
MSU Moorhead (3-2, 1-1 NSIC) was projected to finish seventh in the Northern Sun according to the 2024 NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Dragons lost 7-0 to MSU-Mankato but rallied back to defeat WSU 4-3.
Luzmary Diaz Castillo competes as the Dragons #1. Shaelyn Johnson is MSUM's #2 and Tiannah Gu will compete as the #3.

CHLOE CHONG NAMED PLAYER TO WATCH
For the third straight year, Chloe Chong was named the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Tennis Player to Watch for the Marauders. The junior has earned All-NSIC First Team singles honors in her first two seasons at UMary.

Chong is coming off a season where she went 6-3 in singles competition in the NSIC as she competed as the one for the Marauders. The Selangor, Malaysia, native went 7-3 in doubles competition in the conference with her partner Ilona Freitag. The duo is a two-time Second Team All-NSIC team selection in doubles competition.

NOTABLE RETURNERS

• Hala Hossam Awad returns for her sophomore season after earning All-NSIC Second Team singles in her first season at UMary. The Cairo, Egypt, native went 15-1 overall and 11-0 in conference action. Awad suffered her only loss in a close match (6-1, 2-6, 1-0) against an NCAA Division I opponent.
• Ilona Freitag and Emily Needham return for their third years as Marauders. Freitag went 11-5 overall and 8-3 in conference play in her second season. Freitag and Chloe Chong went 11-5 overall and 7-3 in NSIC matches in 2023, again as the Marauders number-one doubles team.
• Battling past a knee injury early in her sophomore season, Needham went 4-8 overall and 3-5 in the NSIC in singles competition. She finished the year strong, winning four of her last five matches. In perhaps her biggest win of the season, Needham defeated Clara Thoemke of Winona State with the season on the line at the NSIC Tournament on April 21.

NEW FACES
The Marauders have added two scholar-athletes as Luba Moyo and Maria Estinvil look to compete in the 2024 season. Moyo transferred to UMary from Iowa Central Community College, where she graduated with an Associate of Arts and Science with honors. Estinvil transferred from Chowan University as she competed as the one during her freshman year for the Hawks.

MAARUDERS PROJECTED TO FINISH THIRD
UMary is projected to finish third in the Northern Sun, according to the 2024 NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll. Last season, The Marauders finished third in the NSIC, going 11-6 overall and 9-2 in conference. UMary boasts a six-person lineup with four scholar-athletes returning from last year.

Augustana is projected to finish first, followed by Minnesota State University – Mankato, UMary, University of Sioux Falls, Winona State University, St. Cloud State University, Minnesota State University Moorhead, University of Minnesota Crookston, University of Minnesota Duluth and Bemidji State University.

THE STAFF
Vida Saliendra returns for her 12th year as the UMary Head Tennis Coach. Saliendra has had an impressive career at the helm of Marauders Tennis, riding into 2024 on five consecutive winning seasons. The Marauders are 93-81 with Saliendra as their coach. She is joined by assistant coach Erik Porter, who is in his second season with the Marauders.

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