No. 1 singles player Bridget Noack scoops up a backhanded shot. Noack’s four-year career at St. Thomas ended Thursday after losing to Gustavus’ Michaela Schulz. (Lauren Andrego/TommieMedia)
No. 3 singles player Caitlin Bakke goes for an overhead. Bakke lost in three sets to Gustavus’ Sid Dirks: 6-2, 4-6, 2-6. (Lauren Andrego/TommieMedia)
Coach Terry Peck discusses a match with an assistant coach. The Tommies’ season ended Thursday in St. Peter after a loss against Gustavus. (Lauren Andrego/TommieMedia)
No. 2 singles player Shelby Henderson serves against Gustavus’ Lizzy Stanczyk. Henderson dropped her first set 7-6 and then retired the match after Gustavus clinched the win. (Lauren Andrego/TommieMedia
Bakke attempts a forehand to Dirks. Thursday’s loss against Gustavus was Bakke’s only personal loss of the season. (Lauren Andrego/TommieMedia)
Doubles players Lauren Keller and Paige Becker encourage each other through their final set. The No. 3 doubles team fell to Gustavus 8-2. (Lauren Andrego/TommieMedia)
Peck observes Noack’s match. Thursday marked the end of Peck’s thirty-first season coaching St. Thomas tennis. (Lauren Andrego/TommieMedia)
Noack drives a backhand to Schulz. The St. Thomas captain ended her career with a combined singles and doubles record of 180-31. (Lauren Andrego/TommieMedia)
No. 4 singles player Jenna Zimmerman serves against Gustavus’ Allison Baker. Zimmerman defeated Baker 6-3, 6-2 Thursday. (Lauren Andrego/TommieMedia)
Seniors Bridget Noack and Shelby Henderson ended their St. Thomas tennis careers along with the team’s season Thursday evening when the Tommies fell to Gustavus 5-2 in the MIAC tournament conference semifinals at Gustavus.
With both losses in the singles and doubles matches Thursday, Noack’s career record moved to 180-31. Henderson also dropped both of her matches against the Gusties, making her Tommie record 94-47. The one word Noack used to describe her career was “happy.”
“It was so much fun; I had some of the best experiences of my life that I can’t take back,” Noack said.
No. 1 doubles pair Noack and Henderson were overpowered in their doubles match against Gustavus senior Lizzy Stanczyk and junior Michaela Schulz, losing 8-3. Number two-ranked doubles pair Caitlin Bakke and Jenna Zimmerman dropped their match 8-5 and No. 3 pairing Paige Becher and Audra Hoffman lost 6-8.
Down 3-0 heading into the singles competition, Noack said the Tommies’ demeanor never changed.
“We never see that it’s over until it’s finally over. It’s hard to be down 3-0, but that really doesn’t mean anything in the grand scheme of things, so we just go out and fight, and there’s still a chance,” Noack said.
Fourth and fifth-ranked singles players sophomore Jenna Zimmerman and junior Paige Becher each won their matches. Zimmerman defeated sophomore Ally Baker 6-3 and 6-2, and Becker took down freshman Briana Hartmann 6-0 and 6-1.
Bakke, third-ranked single player, started off her match against senior Sid Dirks with a 6-2 first set win. Dirks battled back to take the second set 6-4 and defeated Bakke 6-2 in the third. Bakke said Dirks got better as the match went on.
“She really picked up her game, and then I kind of got in my head a little bit and let her get in my head and started playing her game instead of mine,” Bakke said.
Despite losing to the Gusties (20-7 overall), Tommie (16-3 overall) coach Terry Peck feels St. Thomas left St. Peter with a victory.
“There’s no quit in any of them,” Peck said. “It was important to leave on a high note, to finish our season on top, and that’s how we feel.”
Bakke leads a core of talented underclassmen with the Tommies expecting a strong group of freshmen next season.
“We’re just kind of looking for everybody to step up, and we have some new players coming in, some recruits, so we’re hopeful for them too,” Bakke said.
Jesse Krull can be reached at krul7386@stthomas.edu.