MIAC Release
 
The 2013 tennis season was one to remember for the St. Catherine University squad that won its first Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) regular season championship in program history – and only the second conference title in school history in any spot – with a perfect 10-0 conference record.
 
After the Wildcats qualified for their third-straight MIAC playoffs and finished the regular season ranked No. 30 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) National Poll, the team is bringing in a handful of postseason MIAC awards.
 
For the second season in a row, Head Coach Ben Hageseth was named the MIAC Women's Tennis Coach-of-the-Year, while Michaela Burroughs (Waterloo, Neb.) was named the Chris Evert Award recipient, the conference office announced Wednesday.
  
In his fifth season with the Wildcats, Hageseth led the team to its best finish in program history with a 15-1 record. In regular season conference matches, Hageseth coached the Wildcats to an impressive 28-2 record in doubles play, guided two singles players to perfect 10-0 conference records and helped Burroughs earn the top MIAC individual award. He also led the Wildcats to their first-ever No. 1 seed in the MIAC playoffs. 
 
Burroughs is the fourth player in St. Catherine tennis history to earn the Chris Evert Award which annually recognizes a senior tennis student-athlete with outstanding sportsmanship and exemplary athletic, academic and humanitarian accomplishments.
 
 
Off the court, Burroughs earned Academic All-MIAC honors in 2012 and earned the Thomas More Award – given to students who demonstrate outstanding loyalty and service to St. Catherine – at last week's honors and awards banquet. She has demonstrated leadership and sportsmanship as the team's captain and twice was voted the Jeanne Arth Award recipient by her teammates.
 
In addition to Burroughs' two All-MIAC honors this season, three other Wildcats pulled in the top conference awards for a team total of seven All-MIAC honors.
  
Victoria Bravo (Tucson, Ariz.) earned All-MIAC in both singles and doubles in her first season as a Wildcat. She finished as the top individual player in the conference with a perfect 10-0 record at No. 1 singles and as the top-ranked MIAC player in the ITA Central Region.  Overall, Bravo lost just twice in non-conference contests to players ranked in the ITA West Region  top-10 – one of whom was No. 3 nationally at the time of the competition.
 
In doubles, Bravo and her partner Kylie Ketcho (Edina, Minn.) – who was named All-MIAC in doubles in her first season with the Wildcats – finished the conference season with an impressive 9-1 MIAC record at No. 1 doubles. The pair lost just once to Carleton College's Bridget Doyle and Anne Lombardi – which was the top-ranked MIAC team in the ITA Central Region. In regular season matches, Ketcho was 14-2 while Bravo finished at 13-3 – all at the No. 1 spot.
 
For the second-straight season, Maria Koval (Green Bay, Wis.) earned All-MIAC honors in both singles and doubles. She finished her MIAC season with a perfect 10-0 record at No. 3 singles and 9-1 at the No. 2 doubles position with Burroughs. In just two collegiate seasons, Koval has compiled a 30-6 doubles record and a 28-9 record in singles matches.
 
The Wildcat postseason accolades rounded out with first-year Mikinzee Salo (Brainerd, Minn.) earning the MIAC All-Sportsmanship award. Members of the All-MIAC Sportsmanship team are selected by their coaches and teammates as individuals who demonstrate ideals of positive sportsmanship both on and off the field of competition.
 
The Wildcats finished the 2013 season with a 15-2 overall record, ranked No. 30 in the nation and No. 6 in the Central Region.
 
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