Saint John's tennis returns to action with its first outdoor matches this weekend at the Chang Tennis Complex in Collegeville: Saint Mary's on Saturday (April 10) and St. Thomas on Sunday (April 11). Both matches are scheduled for 1 p.m.

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (4-1, 3-1 MIAC) resumes competition this weekend for the first time since it went 1-1 with 9-0 scores back on March 26-27. The Johnnies cruised to a 9-0 non-conference win over Minnesota-Morris at Sta-Fit in Sartell and suffered a 9-0 setback, their first of the season, the following day at Gustavus Adolphus. 

The Johnnies rested their top two singles players, seniors Thomas Gillach (Lindstrom, Minn./Chisago Lakes) and Nate Jordre (St. Cloud, Minn./Tech), and won each bout against UMM in straight sets.

Gillach teamed up with classmate Logan Lintvedt (Independence, Minn./Delano) for an 8-0 shutout at No. 1 doubles. The Fischer (Spicer, Minn./Willmar) triplets recorded a win each: Peyton at No. 2 singles, Will at No. 5 singles and Hunter (with freshman Ian Aadland) at No. 3 doubles.

Gillach and sophomore Wil McDowell (Sioux Falls, S.D./O'Gorman) were the closest to victory for SJU against the Gusties with an 8-6 defeat at No. 1 doubles. Freshman Mason Meyer (Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson) was the lone Johnnie to reach two points in singles play.

A LOOK AT THE CARDINALS: Saint Mary's (3-4, 1-2 MIAC) is currently riding a two-match losing streak following a 5-4 non-conference defeat last Friday (April 2) to Northwestern. The Cardinals rallied from a 4-1 deficit, but came up just short with the decisive match in a super-breaker at No. 5 singles (3-6, 6-2, 10-1). SMU has yet to win a match at No. 1 singles and is 1-6 at No. 1 doubles. Junior Trevor Smiley is 6-1, including a 5-1 mark at No. 4 singles.

IN 2019: SJU blanked SMU 9-0 the last time these two teams met on April 7, 2019, at Sta-Fit in Sartell. The Johnnies won all six singles matches in straight sets. 

Gillach and Ryan Meger '19 allowed only one match point each at Nos. 2 and 3, respectively, while Jordre and Hunter Krebsbach '19 swept their sets at Nos. 1 and 5 by 6-2 scores.

Gillach and Jordre improved to 8-1 (3-0 MIAC) with an 8-4 win at No. 1 doubles, while Meger and Jonah Punnoose '19 moved their mark to 7-2 (3-0 MIAC) with an 8-5 decision at No. 2.

SERIES HISTORY: SJU owns the series with a 28-2 record since 1991, including a spotless 12-0 mark in Collegeville.

A LOOK AT THE TOMMIES: St. Thomas (4-3, 2-0 MIAC) saw its three-match win streak end with a 7-2, non-conference loss last Friday (April 2) to Wisconsin-Eau Claire, which won all six singles matches. The Tommies are just above .500 with 4-3 records at Nos. 3, 5 and 6 singles. UST is 5-2 at No. 3 doubles, thanks to a 4-2 showing from freshman Myles Krzewinski and senior Sterling Sibley.

TWO YEARS AGO: SJU last took on the Tommies nearly two years ago (April 14, 2019) at Sta-Fit and posted an 8-1 victory. The Johnnies cruised through the three doubles matches and won four of its five singles matches in straight sets.

Ryan Meger '19 won his fifth straight match at No. 3 (6-2, 6-4), while Gillach (No. 2), Jess Hansen '20 (No. 6) and Hunter Krebsbach '19 (No. 5) each won their fourth in a row.

Gillach and Jordre moved to 9-0 at No. 1 doubles (10-1 overall, 5-0 MIAC) with a win (8-1), while Meger and Jonah Punnoose '19 improved to 8-1 (5-0 MIAC) at No. 2 thanks to an 8-3 victory.

The Tommies won their lone match via the super-breaker at No. 4 singles (1-6, 6-4, 11-9).

SERIES HISTORY: The Johnnies are 6-10 against the Tommies over the last 16 meetings. Sunday's match is the first between the two programs in Collegeville since 2011, a 9-0 shutout win for UST. The last on-campus victory for SJU occurred April 16, 2004 (5-4).