WINONA, Minn. - The Warriors return to Winona this weekend with a 9-1 (6-0 NSIC) record to face off against conference foe, Upper Iowa (1-6, 1-5 NSIC).

Last season, Winona State defeated the Peacocks 7-2, only dropping one match apiece in singles and doubles completion. The Warriors currently sit in second in the NSIC, behind Augustana who is also undefeated in conference play (11-1, 7-0 NSIC). With a win this weekend, Winona State has the opportunity to jump into a tie for the top spot in the conference as Augustana enters the non-conference portion of their schedule down in Orlando, Florida.
 
Prior to this weekend's match, the Warriors spent three days in competition down in Orlando, Florida and came home sporting a 3-1 record on the trip. Winona State defeated Seton Hill University (6-3), University of The Sciences (5-4), and Eckerd College (6-3). The lone loss of the trip came to Christian Brothers University (5-3).
 
Senior Kali Hackmann and sophomore Tayla Card have started off the spring season with a bang. The two Warriors are both undefeated (10-0) in singles matches and a perfect 8-0 as doubles partners. These ladies have quickly asserted themselves on the court as Winona State's anchor on an immensely talented team.
 
Four Warriors garnered All-Conference honors at the conclusion of the 2016-17 season, each of which return for this season. Rachel Gantz was named to the Singles Second Team and Kendra Kappes earned Singles Honorable Mention. Justin Daane and Kaisey Skibba each received Honorable Mention status for doubles' play.
 
Winona State was tabbed second in the 2018 NSIC Coaches' Preseason Tennis Poll, tying Upper Iowa with 98 points. The Warriors tallied one first-place vote. Augustana collected the other 11 first-place votes as the preseason favorite to win the conference (121 total points).
 
The Warriors returned a strong core group this season, while adding two new players. Caitlin Anderson is the lone freshman on the team, and senior Kali Hackmann also joined the tennis team this spring after previously being a member of the WSU basketball team.