FARGO, N.D. -- MSU Moorhead tennis concluded their regular season in style on Sunday morning in a gritty 4-3 decision over St. Cloud State. The Dragons locked up the number six seed in the NSIC Tournament with the victory. 

"This was a huge conference win," said MSUM head tennis coach Alexis Konecne. "We are super excited for the tournament next weekend."

The Dragons would battle hard to earn the ever-important team doubles point as the team of Luzmary Diaz Castillo and Shaelyn Johnson stretched their pairings win streak to three in a 6-2 decision. The duo is now 10-5 overall on the season heading into the NSIC Tournament. St. Cloud State would take the number two doubles match, narrowly edging Tiannah Gu and Madison Bell, 6-4. The decisive match at number three doubles came down to the hard-fought effort of Katryna Hansen and Claire Nemmers. In their match against Mamiko Yamaguchi and Maria Molitor, the pair would need a tiebreaker to decide the match. Hansen and Nemmers battled for a 9-7 win in that tiebreak to earn a 7-6 win, giving MSUM the doubles point. 

Johnson would continue her winning ways in singles play, picking up a team point for MSUM in a three-set barnburner with Maria Paz Aoki. The senior fell in the first set 6-3 before rallying back to win the final two sets (6-3, 6-1) for her ninth win of the season. Gu would win her third straight singles match at the number three spot, picking up a straight sets win over Oriana Grott (6-3, 6-2). For Gu, it is her 10th singles win of the season. Her doubles partner Bell would also win her singles bout with Maria Molitor, winning in straight sets 6-1, 6-2. The win for Bell provided the Dragons four team points and solidified a victory for MSUM, locking up the sixth seed in the NSIC Tournament in the process. 

Dragons 4, Huskies 3

Doubles
No. 1 - Luzmary Diaz Castillo/Shaleyn Johnson def. Claudia Munoz Perez/Maria Paz Aoki - 6-2
No. 2 - Oriana Grott/Brooklyn Broadwell def. Tiannah Gu/Madison Bell - 6-4
No. 3 - Katryna Hansen/Claire Nemmers def. Mamiko Yamaguchi/Maria Molitor - 7-6 (9-7)

Singles
No. 1 - Claudia Munoz Perez def. Luzmary Diaz Castillo - 6-4, 7-5
No. 2 - Shaelyn Johnson def. Maria Paz Aoki - 3-6, 6-3, 6-1
No. 3 - Tiannah Gu def. Oriana Grott - 6-3, 6-2
No. 4 - Brooklyn Broadwell def. Katryna Hansen - 6-3, 6-1
No. 5 - Madison Bell def. Maria Molitor - 6-1, 6-2
No. 6 - Mamiko Yamaguchi def. Claire Nemmers - 7-5, 6-3


Up Next

MSUM will play Minnesota State in the first round of the NSIC Tournament on Friday, April 26 beginning at 11:30 a.m. in Sioux Falls, S.D.