No. 29 Midwestern State vs No. 71 Dallas Baptist

Saturday, April 23 – 2 p.m.
MSU Tennis Center (Wichita Falls, Texas)
All-Time Series: MSU leads 10-1

WICHITA FALLS, Texas -- Midwestern State and Dallas Baptist rumble in the closing Lone Star Conference contest on Saturday. The 29th-ranked Mustangs and the 71st-ranked Patriots scrap at MSU Tennis Center. The senior day ceremonies will follow the 2 p.m. match.

ABOUT THE MUSTANGS

The 29th-ranked Mustangs control an 18-7 record after falling to No. 6 Cameron and No. 46 St. Mary's last week. MSU is 5-3 in LSC matches and sits fourth in the standings. The team is 12-3 when playing at home. Midwestern State earned a spot in the South Central regional Rankings. The Mustangs remained fourth in the April 20 release.

Anda Ghinga is 14-10 at line one, dropping her last five matches. The sophomore earned her second career Lone Star Conference Player of the Week honors on March 9. The Arad, Romania, native is 2-5 against ranked opponents this year. Ghinga and Hannah Yip sit at 24th in the ITA National Doubles Rankings. The duo had back-to-back losses last week. They still hold 18 wins at line one.

Emilija Visic holds 17 wins this year and just two losses. She earned her first LSC Player of the Week honor after winning ten battles from March 9 to 16. The Phoenix, Ariz., product is 6-2 in LSC play. Visic and Casie Curry hold the 38th spot in the ITA National Rankings. The pair has a 17-2 record, winning their last six matches. They have seven Lone Star Conference wins at line two.

Curry has 17 singles wins this season. The junior is 10-2 at line four for the Mustangs. She stepped up to play at line two in the last four contests. The Wichita Falls native is 3-1 at No. 2. Curry recently surpassed 100 career wins, which puts her 13th in the MSU program records. She needs three more wins at singles or doubles to tie Kristen Bixby with 109 combined wins.

Skylar Minns holds a 16-7 record. The sophomore played the last two matches a line five where she is 3-1. At line six, Minns has a 12-6 tally. She and Sydney Williams are 15-8 at doubles line three this season. The duo dropped their last four matches.

Ethne Dowling and Kyndall Quiroz play at line three and six for the Mustangs. Dowling has a 5-7 record at line three while Quiroz is 1-1 at No. 6. Dowling, a junior from Wrexham, United Kingdom, has an 8-10 tally in all singles play. Quiroz, a sophomore from San Antonio, is 4-4 for the season.

AT THE HELM

Scott Linn is in his 12th season at the helm of the Midwestern State men's and women's tennis programs. He guided the Mustangs to 17 NCAA Tournament appearances since he arrived in Wichita Falls in 2010. The Mustangs have thrived under Linn's leadership as he revived the program to the highest level. Linn has directed the women's program to a 201-88 (.698) record in his eleven seasons on campus. This includes nine NCAA Division II postseason appearances. Linn helped the team reach the round of 16 in 2013, 2014, 2018, and 2019. The Mustangs also made trips to the NCAA quarterfinals in 2015 and 2017 under his direction.

SCOUTING THE PATRIOTS

Dallas Baptist is 8-10 in the spring season. The Patriots lost their last four matches to hold a 3-5 record in the Lone Star Conference. This places the team seventh in the league standings. DBU has three wins when playing on the road this year. In the ITA National Team Rankings, Dallas Baptist is No. 71.

Taylor Leslie is No. 58 on the singles side of the ITA listings. The senior from Redington Shores, Fla., is 2-2 at line one this season. Leslie was the 2021 Lone Star Conference Player of the Year.

Caroline Hudson owns a 5-6 record at line one. The sophomore from Ocean Springs, Mich., has four wins in LSC matches. Hudson and Grace Gaskins are 5-2 at doubles line one. Gaskins has a 6-5 tally at line two.

Adriana Carpenter is 3-8 from line three for the Patriots. The senior from Veracruz, Mexico, is 2-6 in league matches, dropping the last four. Carpenter and Sofia Teran are 7-7 at doubles line three. Teran, a sophomore from Zacatecas, Mexico, is 3-5 in LSC matches.

Elise Carbo is 2-5 in all singles play. The freshman lost her last five matches at line five. Ira Vogelmann is 4-6 at line six. The senior is 8-9 for the full season.

ABOUT THE SERIES

In 11 contests, MSU won ten matches against DBU. The Mustangs' only loss to the Patriots was in 2012 when Dallas Baptist bested Midwestern State at home. Since then, MSU won eight consecutive matches. The Mustangs are 4-1 at MSU Tennis Center versus DBU. In the first conference match in 2021, Midwestern State beat Dallas Baptist 6-1.

UP NEXT

Midwestern State starts play in the Lone Star Conference Championship next week. The top eight LSC teams will battle in the quarterfinal round on Thursday, April 28. The semifinal matches and championship match will take place on Friday, April 29, and Saturday, April 30.