NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The St. Olaf College men's tennis team picked up its season victory in as many days with a 7-2 non-conference win over the University of Northwestern on Saturday at Carlson Courts.

In its first home match of the spring, St. Olaf (6-10) swept the three doubles matches and picked up four straight-set singles wins to defeat Northwestern (18-10). The Oles have won all three head-to-head meetings with the Eagles, with all three matches occurring since 2018.

With a "win-and-in" conference match scheduled for Sunday, St. Olaf mixed up its lineups in both singles and doubles. Seniors Max Loesch and Jakub Belik slid up to the No. 1 doubles spot and moved to 6-2 on the season with an 8-6 victory while atop the lineup for the first time. The first-time pairing of first year Marjan Veldic and senior Ben Anderson posted an 8-6 victory at No. 2 doubles, while senior Karsten Johnson and first year Ryan Birnesser earned the third win in four matches together with an 8-2 victory at No. 3 doubles.

In singles, Veldic, Belik, and Anderson registered straight-set victories at the top-three spots and Birnesser added one at No. 5 singles. Northwestern, which played an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (MIAC) match in the morning, won super tiebreakers at No. 4 and No. 6 singles for its lone two points of the day.

Birnesser claimed the first dual-match singles victory of his young career with a 6-3, 6-1 win at No. 5 singles. In his first match at No. 1 singles, Veldic logged a 6-4, 7-5 victory to extend his winning streak to three matches. Belik moved up to No. 2 singles and came away with a 6-4, 6-2 win, while Anderson slid up from No. 6 to No. 3 singles and earned a 6-4, 6-3 win for his third victory in a row.

St. Olaf faces Macalester College on Sunday, April 28 at 3 p.m. at West Hills Tennis and Fitness Center in Owatonna. The Oles need a win or a loss by Saint John's University to Carleton College to clinch a spot in the MIAC Playoffs.