WICHITA FALLS, Texas – Midwestern State opens the 2026 campaign with a dual match against Seward County Community College on Sunday afternoon at MSU Tennis Center. First serve is scheduled for 1 p.m.

The forecast for Sunday is calling for mostly clear skies with 10-15 mph wind out of the southwest and a high temperature of 56 degrees. 
The Mustangs are under the direction of first-year head coach Luis Diaz, who was the ITA South Central Region Senior Player of the Year and LSC Senior of the Year in 2024 while playing at Midwestern State.

The Mustangs reached the national semifinals last season after conquering the NCAA Division II South Central Regional. MSU defeated Rockhurst and Wayne State (Mich.) before succumbing to No. 2-ranked Nova Southeastern in Altamonte Springs, Florida.
 
Midwestern State finished the dual-match season with a 23-4 record, including a 9-1 mark in the LSC. The Mustangs posted an 8-1 record at MSU Tennis Center last spring.
Midwestern State is No. 8 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association preseason rankings, led by Selin Sepken, Camila Garcia and Emilia Gyorgy.

Sepken leads the South Central region with a No. 1 ranking, while Gyorgy is No. 5 and Garcia is ranked sixth. 

The Mustangs are just as strong in doubles, with three pairs of Mustangs in the top eight: Gyorgy and Garcia are No. 1, Sepken and Hattie Berend are No. 6, while Jasmine Crain and Alessia Dolce are ranked eighth in the region.

Sepken was an automatic qualifier for the ITA Cup in singles last fall after winning the ITA DII Women's South Central Regional Championships in Tyler. Emilia Gyorgy and Camila Garcia earned an automatic bid in doubles.

Sepken did not drop a set in her six matches at the South Central Regional Championships three weeks ago. The native of Istanbul, Turkey, who transferred to MSU from Idaho as a graduate student, defeated Margaux Rene of Angelo State in the final, 6-0, 7-5.

Sepken completed her run at the 2025 ITA Cup with a 2-1 record after defeating Lilie Bizouerne of Queens (NY) and Vasilissa Kupriyanova of North Georgia. The transfer from Idaho lost her first-round match at the ITA Cup to Eleanor Coleman of Rockhurst, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2.

Gyorgy and Garcia also went 2-1 in the doubles event. Gyorgy/Garcia defeated Rin Igarashi and Sofia Antolini of Catawba after posting a straight-set victory over Alissia Aleksandra Kivi and Nicole Kempton of Slippery Rock.  The fourth-seeded pairing of Daniela Tijaro and Renske Ubachs from Washburn eliminated the MSU duo from the main draw in the opening round with a 3-6, 6-2, 10-4 victory.

Seward County finished last season with a 4-4 record overall and was 1-4 in away duals.

Midwestern State is scheduled to play Northwest Missouri State and Cowley County in Arkansas City, Kansas, on Feb. 6 and Feb. 7.