ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – The College of Saint Benedict tennis team begins a new era this weekend when it travels to Decorah, Iowa, for a pair of matches.
 
The matches against Luther and Buena Vista – scheduled to be played Saturday, Sept. 10, in Decorah, Iowa – mark Michael Engdahl's first in his tenure as Saint Benedict's head coach. Engdahl was hired in July to take over for Scott Larsen, who resigned in May after 10 years as the program's head coach.
 
Saturday's two matches mark the first of four CSB has scheduled for the 2016-17 fall season. Saint Benedict takes on Buena Vista at noon, then plays host Luther at 3 p.m.
 
Buena Vista is 0-2 so far in 2016 with losses to Dubuque and Nebraska Wesleyan. Luther is 2-0 with wins over Edgewood and Wheaton. The Norse swept Wheaton 9-0 and gave lost a single match to Edgewood in an 8-1 victory.
 
CSB is a young squad this year with six first years on its roster, but Saint Benedict also returns experience from last season. Seniors Laura Finn and Megan Hintz return after playing nearly every match for CSB, and Hintz finished second on the team with six singles wins. Taylor Kraemer finished second on the team with eight doubles wins as a sophomore in 2015-16, and Cassy Finn and Hintz both had seven doubles wins.
 
After this weekend's matches in Iowa, CSB is on the road again Saturday, Sept. 17, when it plays UW-Eau Claire and UW-Stout in Menomonie, Wis. Saint Benedict plays the bulk of its schedule, including all MIAC matches, in the spring.