OWATONNA, Minn. (Feb. 22, 2026) - The Buena Vista women's tennis team continued its outdoor schedule on Sunday afternoon at the University of Minnesota-Morris, but the Beavers dropped a thriller on the road by a score of 5-2.

The Cougars clipped BVU in double play despite the No. 2 tandem for BVU of Tayor Fritz and Abbey Meseck winning by a 6-2 margin. The No. 3 team of Fiona Astleford and Jenna Onstot battled until the end but came up just short at 6-4.

Three of the Beavers losses in singles play came in the third-set tiebreaker, including Fritz at No. 2 who fell 7-5 in the third set. After dropping the first set, 6-3, she bounced right back to force the tiebreaker with a 6-3 win of her own. Meseck jumped out to win her first set at No. 3 but then dropped two straight with Charlie Rayford doing the same at No. 4.

Hannah Higgins won via injury default at No. 1 despite winning the opening set 6-2. The second set was tied 1-1 at the time of the default. Astleford also notched a straight sets win at No. 6.

"I'm overall pleased with the ladies' improvement since the fall and into these first two matches of the spring, and I'm looking forward to our spring trip to Hilton Head," says BVU head coach Dan Taylor.

Buena Vista is 1-13 overall on the year and is off until it plays a non-conference match at Westminster College (Mo.) on March 7 at 11 a.m. The match is the start of its spring trip to Hilton Head, S.C., where it will play three matches over the course of the week.