SEWARD, Neb. – The Concordia University women’s tennis team won for the third time over its past four conference matches and sewed up an above .500 GPAC finish as both Bulldog squads concluded the regular season in Seward on Monday. The Concordia women topped rival Doane, 5-4, while the Bulldog men were shut out, 9-0, by the Tigers.
First-year head coach Joel Reckewey’s squads will enter this weekend’s GPAC tournament with records of 5-10 overall, 4-3 GPAC (fourth place) on the women’s side and 3-9 overall, 1-4 GPAC (fifth place) on the men’s side.
In his first season, Reckewey has helped the women’s program rebound after a 2-5 conference mark in 2014.
“The women have had a very nice season,” Reckewey said. “To have a winning conference record with a first-year coach, I’m very pleased with the way they’ve played and the way they’ve competed. We have defined some strong doubles teams, which has really helped us start well in some matches.
“Today was a close finish, but we came out ahead.”
Leading the team score 4-3, Concordia clinched the match when Alison Ebel triumphed over Savannah Mitchell, 6-2, 6-3, at No. 5. That helped the Bulldogs earn a split of the six singles battles.
Both senior Grace Hollenbeck and freshman Emily Meisinger went a perfect 2-0 on the day. Hollenbeck made her final career home appearance along with fellow senior Elyse Kohl on Monday. Hollenbeck bumped her season record at No. 2 singles to 6-7 with her 6-3, 6-4 win over Doane’s Ellie Bender.
“It’s really exciting. It means a lot,” Hollenbeck said of concluding her home career in winning fashion. “We’re all really excited about the team this year. We’re looking forward to playing at the tournament this weekend. I think we have a good chance going in.”
Meisinger, a native of York, Neb., owns the team’s top singles record (9-6). The Bulldog rookie went 5-2 against conference opponents, finishing her regular season by defeating Kayla Bamesberger, 6-0, 6-4.
Concordia took a 2-1 lead after doubles courtesy of wins at No. 1 (Hollenbeck/Annie Horn) and at No. 2 (Kohl/Meisinger). Both of those combinations went 4-2 against GPAC competition. The duo of Hollenbeck and Horn is now 8-6 overall this season.
“We’ve helped each other a lot,” Hollenbeck said. “Annie’s so much fun to play with and she’s so positive. She doesn’t need any help from me. We do a good job of keeping each other grounded and keeping each other encouraged and positive. We get excited for each other when the other does something well.”
On the men’s side, the Tigers won every set in both singles and doubles play. The Bulldogs have played five-straight matches without No. 1 player Javier Moreno, who is sidelined by injury.
Both Bulldog squads will compete at the GPAC tournament on Friday and Saturday in Fremont, Neb. View tournament pairings HERE.
“I like how we’re positioned,” Reckewey said. “Being fourth (on the women’s side) in the conference gives us a chance to play a winnable match. We’re looking forward to that. I think we’re playing well at the right time.”
NEXT UP - GPAC Quarterfinals
MEN: No. 5 Concordia at No. 4 Midland, Friday, 9 a.m.
WOMEN: No. 4 Concordia vs. No. 5 Hastings, Friday, 11:30 a.m.
Junior Daniel Apacible