No. 29 Midwestern State vs No. 73 Texas A&M-Kingsville

Thursday, April 28 – 12 p.m.
Arlington Tennis Center (Arlington, Texas)
All-Time Series: MSU leads 13-1

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Midwestern State looks to kick-off the 2022 Lone Star Conference Tournament with a win over No. 73 Texas A&M-Kingsville. The 29th-ranked Mustangs and the Javelinas battle at the Arlington Tennis Center on Thursday, April 28. The first serve is set for noon in Arlington, Texas.

LSC POSTSEASON TOURNAMENT

Midwestern State qualified for 23 conference tournaments since 1997. The Mustangs have five championships in six years starting in 2014. MSU is searching for its first LSC Championship since 2019.

Thursday, April 28, 2022
Women's Quarterfinal #1: No. 3 Angelo State vs. No. 6 UT Tyler, 8:30 a.m.
Women's Quarterfinal #2: No. 2 St. Mary's vs. No. 7 Dallas Baptist, 8:30 a.m.
Women's Quarterfinal #3: No. 1 Cameron vs. No. 8 UT Permian Basin, 8:30 a.m.
Women's Quarterfinal #4: No. 4 Midwestern State vs. No. 5 Texas A&M-Kingsville, Noon

Friday, April 29, 2022
Women's Semifinal #1: Winner Quarterfinal #1 vs. Winner Quarterfinal #2, 9:30 a.m.
Women's Semifinal #2: Winner Quarterfinal #3 vs. Winner Quarterfinal #4, 9:30 a.m.

Saturday, April 30, 2022
Women's Final: Semifinal winners, 9:30 a.m.

ABOUT THE MUSTANGS

The 29th-ranked Mustangs control a 19-7 record after sweeping No. 71 DBU on Saturday. MSU finished the season with a 6-3 LSC tally. The team is 1-0 when playing at neutral sites. Midwestern State earned a spot in the South Central regional Rankings. The Mustangs remained fourth in the April 20 release.
 
Anda Ghinga is 15-10 at line one, snapping her five-match slip on Saturday. 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 holds 18 wins at line one. They played their first match at No. 2 doubles last Saturday against DBU.
 
Emilija Visic has 18 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 7-2 in LSC play. Visic and Casie Curry hold the 38th spot in the ITA National Rankings. The pair controls an 18-2 record, winning their last seven matches. They have one win at No. 1 doubles.
 
Curry has 18 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 five contests. The Wichita Falls native is 4-1 at No. 2. Curry recently surpassed 100 career wins, which puts her 13th in the MSU program records. She needs one more win at singles or doubles to tie Kristen Bixby with 109 combined wins.
 
Skylar Minns holds a 17-7 record. At line six, the sophomore has a 12-6 tally. She and Sydney Williams are 16-8 at doubles line three this season. The duo cut their four-match slide on Saturday.
 
Ethne Dowling and Kyndall Quiroz play at line three and six for the Mustangs. Dowling has a 6-7 record at line three while Quiroz is 1-1 at No. 6. Dowling, a junior from Wrexham, United Kingdom, has an 9-10 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 203-91 (.690) 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 JAVELINAS

Texas A&M-Kingsville is 10-10 for the season. The team finished with a 5-4 record in the Lone Star Conference. The Javelinas swept Western New Mexico in the season finale on April 24.

Alessa Maier holds the 56th spot in the ITA's national rankings. She also leads the Javelinas from line two with a 13-4 record. The sophomore won the last four matches after falling to No. 56 Anastasia Uspenskaia (Cameron). Maier has an 8-1 LSC wins, including a victory over Yip on April 1.
She and Manuela Turolo have a 10-7 tally for the year. The duo dropped to Minns and Williams by a 6-2 score. Turolo owns a 12-6 record at singles line six. The freshman has two wins at line five. She fell in three sets to Minns earlier in the season.

Maya Donkor is 5-12 at line one. The junior went 3-6 in LSC play, including a loss to Ghinga. Donkor is 0-3 versus nationally ranked opponents.
 
She and Raina Zaffar hold a 6-12 record playing at No.1 doubles. Zaffar is 8-10 for the season. The sophomore owns a 6-9 tally at line four. She is 4-5 in league play, including a straight set loss to Curry.

Noemi Sante is 8-8 at line three with wins in her last two matches. The sophomore clinched line two wins against Texas A&M-Texarkana and Weatherford College. She went 5-3 in the Lone Star Conference and beat Dowling in three sets.
 
Sante and Milou ter Morsche are 6-8 at doubles line two. The duo dropped to Curry and Visic on April 1. Ter Morsche had just two LSC losses. She overcame Visic in straight sets. Overall, the sophomore has a 13-6 tally for the year.

ABOUT THE SERIES

MSU has a 13-1 overall record and a 9-1 conference tally against TAMUK. The Javelinas' only win was in 2018 on their home court. Since then, the Mustangs have taken five straight matches. MSU snatched a 4-3 victory over Texas A&M-Kingsville on April 1. Midwestern State is 4-0 when playing TAMUK at neutral sites.

UP NEXT

With a win, Midwestern State would be to the next round of the Lone Star Conference Tournament. The Mustangs would face the winner of No. 1 Cameron vs. No. 8 UT Permian Basin. The semifinal match is set for Friday, April 29, at Arlington Tennis Center. The first serve will commence at 9:30 a.m.