THIS WEEKEND IN PEACOCK TENNIS… Upper Iowa hits the road for its final weekend of regular-season action from Apr. 9-10. Upper Iowa will head to Sioux Falls, S.D. to face the University of Sioux Falls at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Apr. 9, before a matchup against No. 20 Augustana University at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday, Apr. 10.
 
LAST TIME IN PEACOCK TENNIS... Upper Iowa fell by a 5-2 against Winona State University on Mar. 26 in the team's most recent match. Lina Ziani (6-4, 6-3) and Padmasree Murugan (7-5, 6-4) picked up straight-set wins at the Nos. 4 and 5 singles spots, respectively. WSU secured the win with a doubles sweep and wins in the Nos. 1, 2, 3, and 6 singles matches. UIU's intrastate dual against NCAA DIII Wartburg College, previously scheduled for Mar. 28, was canceled.
 
2021-22 SEASON REVIEW… Regardless of this weekend's results, the UIU women's tennis team has compiled its best record since the 2016-17 campaign. That team went 9-5 overall and finished second in the NSIC with a 9-2 conference record before a narrow 5-4 loss in the first round of the NSIC tournament.

Young players' growth and immediate impact have powered a team comprised of five underclassmen and two juniors. UIU holds a .524 winning percentage in both singles (43-39, 27-25 NSIC) and doubles (22-20, 14-13 NSIC). Freshman Charalampia Grammatikaki has led the way with a 12-2 singles record in the No. 1 spot, including an 8-1 mark against NSIC competition. Varvara Ogorodnikova's 10-3 singles record is a close second as the sophomore has gone 7-1 at No. 3, 3-2 at No. 2, and 6-2 overall in NSIC action. In No. 5 singles, newcomer Padmasree Murugan is 7-6 overall and 5-3 against NSIC foes. Jessa Michieli and Lina Ziani have each gone 7-7 (4-5 NSIC) in singles matches. Michieli is 4-5 at No. 2 and 3-2 at No. 3, while Ziani has played all her matches in the No. 4 spot. Elaina Wall (0-10) and Mya Herrmann (0-4) have both seen action as the No. 6 singles.
 
In doubles, Ogorodnikova and Ziani are tied for the team lead with a 10-4 record, and the two are 9-4 (6-3 NSIC) as a doubles pairing. The duo has gone 3-2 at No. 1 and 6-2 at No. 2. Grammatikaki and Michieli are each 9-5 (6-3 NSIC) in doubles, including an 8-5 record as a duo. The pair is 4-4 in the No. 1 spot and 4-1 at No. 2. Murugan and Wall have combined to go 3-5 (2-5 NSIC) at No. 3 doubles, while Murugan and Herrmann are 0-6 as a pairing.
 
POSTSEASON PUSH… The Peacocks are sitting in seventh place in the NSIC heading into the final weekend of play. The conference's top eight teams earn a postseason berth at the 2022 NSIC Women's Tennis Tournament. No. 20 Augustana leads the conference with an 8-0 NSIC record, while Winona State University is second at 8-1. Three teams tie for third with matching 6-3 records: (1) the University of Mary, (2) Minnesota State University, Mankato, and (3) Southwest Minnesota State University. Sioux Falls (5-3) and Upper Iowa (5-4) are sixth and seventh, respectively. The Peacocks hold the head-to-head tiebreaker against eighth-place St. Cloud State University (4-5), who have two matches remaining against MSU and SMSU. Bemidji State University (3-6) is in ninth place, holds the head-to-head tiebreaker against UIU, and has two games left against UMary and Minnesota State University Moorhead (4-11, 0-9 NSIC).
 
With one win this weekend, Upper Iowa would clinch a postseason berth. Though unlikely, the Peacocks could finish as high as third with a 7-5 record if they win out and UMary, MSU, and SMSU lose out. USF is set to face WSU before playing UIU and AUGIE after playing the Peacocks. If Upper Iowa secures a win against Sioux Falls, the Peacocks would be in good shape to trade places in the standings and secure the sixth seed in the NSIC Tournament.
 
The Peacocks can make the postseason even if they lose their remaining games. Two losses would drop UIU to 5-6, but Upper Iowa holds the tiebreaker over SCSU if the Huskies go 1-1 and also finish 5-6. One loss from Bemidji State or two losses from St. Cloud could clinch a postseason berth even with two UIU losses.
 
If BSU and SCSU each go 2-0 to finish and UIU goes 0-2, the Peacocks would not qualify for the tournament. If BSU goes 2-0, SCSU goes 1-1, and UIU goes 0-2, each team would finish with a 5-6 record. The tiebreakers to fill two postseason spots from three teams would likely still see the Peacocks get in as the head-to-head records (SCSU over BSU, BSU over UIU, UIU over SCSU) would not come into play. Instead, the third tiebreaker would be records against the NSIC's top teams. Upper Iowa would likely get the edge thanks to a win against SMSU. If the record against top teams is not enough to break a tie, the fourth tiebreaker would be a coin toss, per NSIC rules.
 
COUNTERING THE COUGARS... Sioux Falls holds a 10-6 (5-3 NSIC) record and is one game ahead of UIU in the loss column. The Cougars went 2-0 last weekend after besting the University of Minnesota Crookston and Bemidji Stae 6-1 and 5-2, respectively. USF's individuals have combined for a 51-42 record in singles play and a 28-20 doubles mark. Katelyn Nesheim leads the Cougars with an 11-3 (7-1 NSIC) singles record, going 7-1 at No. 6, 3-2 at No. 5, and 1-0 at No. 4. 5. Emily Thinnsen is 8-6 (5-3 NSIC) with marks of 5-3 at No. 5 mark and 3-3 at No. 4. Talia Janos is 4-1 at No. 1 and 6-8 (3-5 NSIC) overall, while Megan Quandt is 4-6 (2-4 NSIC) in the top singles spot. Quandt and Janos have gone 5-3 (3-1 NSIC) in No. 1 doubles, while sisters Daniell Joelle Thorfinnson have gone 6-3 (4-1 NSIC) as the No. 2 pairing. The Peacocks hold a 6-5 edge in the all-time series against the Cougars, but USF has won the last four matchups. Last season on Apr. 18, 2021, Sioux Falls handed UIU a 7-0 loss in Upper Iowa's final dual.

VANQUISHING THE VIKINGS... No. 20 Augustana has gone 15-1 and leads the NSIC with an 8-0 record. The nationally-ranked Vikings secured a pair of 7-0 wins over UMC and BSU last weekend. AUGIE's individuals have combined for a 76-12 record in singles play and a 40-8 doubles mark. Valeriya Monko is 12-4 at No. 1, Florentia Hadjigeorgiou is 14-0 at No. 2, and Laura Arce Vieyra is 13-3 (4-1 NSIC) at No. 3. In doubles, Monko and Hadjigeorgiou are 11-3 (5-0 NSIC) at No. 1, Arce Vieyra and Gabriela Jancikova are 11-3 (5-0 NSIC) at No. 2, and Aleksandra Kistanova and  Emily Granson are 12-2 (5-0 NSIC) at No. 3. Augustana is 15-0 in the all-time series against Upper Iowa. The Vikings are scheduled to face Winona State on Saturday, Apr. 6, before playing the Peacocks. Fans can watch UIU's dual against AUGIE through the link at UIUPeacocks.com/Live.
 
LOOKING AHEAD... After the conclusion of the regular season, the NSIC's top eight teams will face off in Sioux Falls, S.D. from Apr. 22-24 in the 2022 NSIC Women's Tennis Tournament. The tournament will take place at the Huether Family Match Pointe, where UIU will face USF on Saturday. The conference tournament is a dual format with three (3) doubles and six (6) singles matches. Friday, Apr. 22, will consist of four quarter-final matches. Saturday, Apr. 23, will consist of two semi-final matches played concurrently. Sunday, Apr. 24, will consist of the championship match. Matches will be pulled once a team has reached four (4) points.