No. 1 Vikings ready for NSIC tournament

Augustana women’s tennis enters the NSIC tournament with a familiar target on its back and a winning streak that continues to define the program.

The Vikings secured their 16th consecutive regular-season conference title on April 11, adding another chapter to one of the most dominant runs in NSIC history. But as postseason play begins, the focus inside the program is less about history and more about what comes next.

“Each year is a little different, a little [more] unique than the year before with different faces and things like that,” head coach Marc Kurtz said. “So it's always nice to just be able to play at a high level or continue the streak even when things change from year to year.”

Augustana (18-2 overall) now turns its attention to the conference tournament, where the stakes shift dramatically. A loss ends the season, while a win pushes the Vikings one step closer to their ultimate goal — another trip to the NCAA tournament.

“I don't have any expectations necessarily, but, you know, the main thing is just to be playing at a high level at the end of the season,” Kurtz said. “So you get to this point and it's like, you win, you keep playing — you lose, your season is over.”

That urgency is especially real for the team’s seniors, including Chelsea Seidewitz, who transferred into the program two years ago and now serves as a captain.

“I'm really fortunate that I ended up coming here, and the team has been great,” Seidewitz said.  “We had such a great year last year. Ending at nationals, it was so much fun. So that's kind of what we're trying to do again this year.”

The Vikings’ success has been fueled by both depth and chemistry. Kurtz emphasized the team’s balance.

“We don't have any holes in our lineup, so everyone is strong,” he said. “We win a lot of matches, not just by our strength at the top but by our depth.”

That depth is complemented by a close-knit team culture, something junior Simone Karaouza believes has taken a step forward this season.

“We’re a team this year,” Karaouza said. “Since last year when we went to nationals, I think what really made us go there and have that great of a result was that fact that we were a team. That was something that I felt was missing my freshman year. We weren’t doing as many things together with the girls outside of practice.”

Karaouza pointed to team traditions and leadership from Seidewitz as key factors in building that unity.

“With this year's captain, she helped us a lot, like bringing Bagel Boy in the morning and stuff,” she said. “We have our little spiritual thing before each match [where] we are holding hands, and each one of us has to talk and say something, so that really helped in becoming a team.”

On the court, Augustana’s matches begin with doubles play — a phase Kurtz sees as critical to postseason success.

“The matches always start with the doubles first, so it's always nice to play good doubles and get the doubles point and then hopefully get a little momentum going into the singles play,” he said. “And we've been overall a pretty strong doubles team throughout the year.”

The Vikings enter the tournament ranked No. 1 in the region, having positioned themselves for potential home matches in the NCAA tournament with a strong showing.

Despite their dominance within the conference, the team understands that the biggest challenges still lie ahead.

“I feel like we're not overanalyzing the situation,” Karaouza said. 

For Seidewitz, the approach remains simple.

“I don't really do anything different,” she said. “We just kind of try and treat it like any other match to not add any more pressure on.”

Still, Seidewitz acknowledged the significance of the moment, especially in her final season and emphasized the importance of fan support as the team heads into the postseason. 

“So just telling them how important it is for us to have them there,” Seidewitz said. “Because nerves can arise like a lot. It can get very intense and just having that support will be there.”

“Tennis is such a mental sport,” Seidewitz said. “And if you have the home court advantage, it’s important to use it and have people there to support you because nerves can arise — like, a lot.”

As Augustana begins its conference tournament run, the formula that carried it through the regular season remains unchanged: depth, discipline and focus.

“You know, you can get the next point — just move forward, move on, learn from your mistakes and be ready for the next point,” Kurtz said. “That's kind of the mentality that you have to have out on the tennis court.”

The NSIC Women’s Tennis tournament will be held at Huether Family Match Pointe on April 24–26. The Vikings received a bye for the first round alongside the #2-seeded Minnesota State. The Vikings will take on the winner of the #4-seeded University of Minnesota Crookston versus the #5-seeded University of Mary on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.