http://www.miac-online.org/news/2012/2/14/MTEN_0214120228.aspx

MIAC Men's Tennis Athlete-of-the-Week

Ian Hansen, Saint John's
Dawson, Minn. / Dawson-Boyd

Ian Hansen's (Dawson, Minn./Dawson-Boyd) senior tennis season couldn't be off to a much better start. The Saint John's captain has been his team's leader thus far - as well as one of the top singles players in the MIAC - as he still remains unbeaten in singles play in 2012. Hansen is 4-0 with two wins at No. 1 and two at No. 2 for the Johnnies, including victories against Division I and Division II opponents. For his great play thus far, Hansen was honored Tuesday as the first-ever recipient of the MIAC Men's Tennis Athlete-of-the-Week award.

Hansen's season began in a big way on Feb. 4 when he earned victories at the No. 1 singles spot against opponents from D-I South Dakota State (6-2, 6-2) and D-II St. Cloud State (6-3, 4-6, 10-4). For an encore, he scored SJU's lone victory Saturday against defending MIAC champion Gustavus from the No. 2 spot (6-4, 6-2), and he added another No. 2 victory Sunday in nonconference action against St. Scholastica (6-2, 6-2). Hansen is just one of three MIAC players with four singles victories and no losses thus far in 2012, and in his four wins he has only dropped one set along the way.

Despite Hansen's individual excellence, Saint John's is off to a 1-3 start this season and an 0-1 start in MIAC play. However, the Johnnies are coming off a 6-3 win over St. Scholastica and will try to build on that with a pair of MIAC matches on the schedule this weekend. Hansen and his teammates will hit the road to face St. Thomas Saturday, and they'll host Carleton Sunday at Gold's Gym in Sartell at noon.

MIAC Women's Tennis Athlete-of-the-Week

Kathryn Schmidt, Carleton
Hopkins, Minn. / Hopkins

Though the 2012 women's season is just a few weeks old, Carleton's Kathryn Schmidt (Hopkins, Minn.) has already proven she can dominate a match, or she can battle from behind to beat a top-notch opponent. Schmidt has started the season 3-0 as the Knights' No. 1 singles player to go with a 2-1 record at No. 1 doubles to help her team start out with three-straight victories. For her performance and contributions to her team, Schmidt has been named the first-ever winner of the MIAC Women's Tennis Athlete-of-the-Week honor.

Schmidt was unstoppable in her first two singles matches of the season, only dropping one game over the course of both matches. She cruised to a 6-0, 6-0 win against Division II St. Cloud State and followed with a dominant 6-1, 6-0 win in her MIAC season debut against Hamline. However, her third win may have been her most impressive as she rallied to beat Saint Mary's McKennah Edwards, who was an ITA regional finalist. Edwards won the first set, 6-2, but Schmidt claimed 6-1 and 10-7 wins over the final two sets to win the match. The is one of just eight MIAC players to start the season 3-0 or better in singles play this year, and one of just two to do it exclusively from the top spot in the lineup.

Thanks to Schmidt and her teammates, Carleton has cruised to a 3-0 overall start and a 2-0 start in conference play by the scores 9-0, 9-0 and 8-1. The Knights are ranked No. 6 in the region, and they'll look to remain unbeaten with a pair of MIAC matches coming up this weekend. They'll travel to Minneapolis to take on Macalester Saturday at Lifetime Fitness at 7:30 p.m., and they also host St. Catherine Sunday in Owatonna at 6:30 p.m.