#21 Midwestern State (2-1) vs. Northwest Missouri State (0-0)
Friday, Mar. 3, 2017 | 1 p.m.
John A. Bryant Tennis Center | Bolivar, Mo.

#21 Midwestern State (2-1) at #11 Southwest Baptist (6-0)
Saturday, Mar. 4, 2017 | 12 p.m.
John A. Bryant Tennis Center | Bolivar, Mo.
 
WICHITA FALLS, Texas – Midwestern State continues its 2017 slate this weekend as the Mustangs square off against a pair of top-10 Central Region teams in Northwest Missouri State and No. 11 Southwest Baptist (Mo.) at the John A. Bryant Tennis Center in Bolivar, Mo.
 
The Mustangs begin the weekend with a 1 p.m. neutral match Friday against Northwest Missouri before facing off against the host team Southwest Baptist Saturday at noon.

MUSTANGS RANKED NO. 21 TO BEGIN 2017
- Midwestern State cracked the top 25 in the 19th-straight national poll last week with the Mustangs appearing at No. 21 in the Oracle/ITA Women's Division II National Team Rankings
- The Mustangs have been ranked inside the top 25 since Apr. 2013
- MSU remained at No. 21 in the national rankings after also coming in 21st in the country in the fall rankings released in November
- The Mustangs continued to stay at third in the South Central Region rankings behind No. 9 St. Mary's and No. 17 Cameron while appearing in front of three nationally-ranked programs in No. 37 St. Edward's, No. 40 Dallas Baptist and No. 43 Tarleton State
 
A LOOK AT THE MUSTANGS
- Midwestern State began the 2017 campaign last weekend with a 2-1 record following home wins over Central Oklahoma (6-3) and Nebraska-Kearney (9-0) while suffering a defeat to No. 9 St. Mary's (7-2) at the Southlake Tennis Center
- Bianca Duff, Greta Lazzarotto and Maddy Coffman each posted 2-1 singles records playing in the middle of the MSU lineup last week to lead the Mustangs
- Duff is currently ranked 19th in the nation and second in the South Central Region in singles after advancing to the ITA South Central Region Championship last fall, currently playing at the No. 3 position for MSU
- Eirini Kontaki also appears in the regional rankings at No. 11 following a solid fall campaign and begins the spring playing at No. 2 singles
- In doubles, Duff and Coffman went a perfect 3-0 on court two in their first matches as Mustangs while the tandem of Lazzarotto and Ashley Ramirez also posted a 3-0 mark at No. 3 doubles

SCOUTING THE BEARCATS
- Northwest Missouri State will open the 2017 season Friday against the Mustangs
- The Bearcats enter the season as the sixth-ranked team in the Central Region after advancing to the first round of the NCAA Tournament a season ago
- Northwest Missouri returns five of its top six players from 2016 excluding Kaja Emersic, who led the Bearcats with a 15-6 record playing at No. 2 singles
- Freshman Tania Teruel is the lone Bearcat to appear in the Central Region rankings at 17th in singles
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
- Midwestern State holds a commanding 13-2 advantage in the series against Northwest Missouri State going back to the 1998 season
- The Mustangs have won 11-straight, last recording an 8-1 against the Bearcats on Mar. 25, 2015 in Wichita Falls
- Northwest Missouri last earned a win over Midwestern State back on Apr. 12, 2001 with a 5-3 victory in Edmond, Okla.
- MSU is 8-2 against NWMSU in neutral site matches

SCOUTING THE BEARCATS
- Southwest Baptist is 6-0 on the season leading up to its home opener Saturday against the Mustangs
- The Bearcats are ranked 11th in the country and second in the Central Region following a 25-4 season that included a trip to the NCAA Quarterfinals in 2016
- Sophomore Lara Soares is 4-1 playing at No. 1 for SBU to rank 46th in the nation and fifth in the region
- Freshman Lucia Diaz sports a 3-0 record in the dual season playing at No. 3 to rank 16th in the regional rankings while senior Lani Tuemmers is 5-0 on court two to rank 20th
- In doubles, Soares and Tuemmers have posted a 6-0 record for sixth in the region
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
- Midwestern State snapped a three-match losing skid to Southwest Baptist last season with a 6-3 win in Wichita Falls, avenging a 5-4 defeat to the Bearcats in the 2015 NCAA Quarterfinals
- The Mustangs lead the all-time series, 7-3, with SBU collecting 5-4 wins in 2014 and 2015
- MSU takes a perfect 3-0 road record against SBU into Saturday's match, last defeating the Bearcats in Bolivar on Apr. 6, 2013 by a score of 6-3
 
LOOKING AHEAD
- Midwestern State returns to the MSU Tennis Center for its Lone Star Conference opener Tuesday as the Mustangs play host to No. 43 Tarleton State in a 3 p.m. match. Admission is free to the event.