The Milwaukee women's tennis team remains close to home for the weekend, hosting a pair of non-conferences matches at River Glen Elite.
 
Up first the Panthers will host an old league foe, as former Horizon League member UIC comes to town on Friday, set for a 12 p.m. start.
 
The weekend then concludes with a visit from St. Thomas, scheduled to get underway at 11 a.m. Sunday.
 
River Glen Elite, the home of MKE Tennis, which is located at 2001 Good Hope Road in Milwaukee (53209), a half-mile west of I-43 between River Hills and Glendale. Admission is free both days.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
UIC: Milwaukee and UIC have continued the all-time series every year since the Flames left the Horizon League and it leans very heavily to UIC's favor. The Flames were a dynasty when in the Horizon, claiming the league title every year from 1997 through 2013 as well as 19 times overall. In fact, at one point, the Flames put together a regular-season winning streak against league foes that reached 146 consecutive matches. Milwaukee has dropped the past 12 in the series, last claiming a victory with a 4-3 decision back in 2014. A year ago, the Flames came out on top, 7-0.
 
The team went 17-5 a season ago, with a 7-1 mark in Missouri Valley Conference play to claim the title – earning its first NCAA Tournament berth as members of the MVC. The standout season was highlighted by several individual honors, including Mayu Ushio being named MVC Player of the Year and Edit Cosmo earning MVC Freshmen of the Year. Elizabeth Lumpkin Robinson was named UIC's women's tennis head coach in November 2023 and led her team to the MVC semifinals for the first time in program history her initial season. The team improved to 4-3 this season with a 6-1 defeat of Roosevelt in most recent action Feb. 15.
 
ST. THOMAS: Milwaukee and St. Thomas will be meeting for just the second time in program history, with the Tommies claiming a 4-1 result last spring.
 
Colby Carlson is entering his third season as head coach of the women's tennis program in the 2025-26 season, leading them to a 6-12 mark last year. The Tommies were picked to finish fifth in the Summit League preseason poll. Emilia Korseth was named to the Summit League's preseason athletes to watch list. St. Thomas is 3-2 on the campaign, falling 4-1 to Colorado Boulder in most recent action Feb. 15 to snap what was a three-match win streak.

LAST WEEK
The Panthers went 1-1, topping Marquette for the second year in a row while battling the University Chicago – the second-ranked team in NCAA Division III – to the final point before falling.
 
Prior to last season, the Milwaukee/Marquette series was very one-sided, with MKE without a win since 1990. A year ago, the Panthers posted their first-ever win against the Golden Eagles, a 4-3 decision. A total of 376 days later, MKE made it back-to-back 4-3 victories when Sara Simonova pulled off a three-set comeback to claim the decisive point.

HORIZON LEAGUE HONORS
Nel Van Hout continues to be an early-season bright spot, posting a 2-0 week in singles play to run her win streak to seven consecutive dating back to the fall. She was recognized with Horizon League Singles Player of the Week honors Feb. 18 after the 2-0 week. She defeated Marquette, 6-3, 6-3 at No. 1 Friday before topping the University of Chicago - the second-ranked team in NCAA DIII - by a score of 6-4, 6-3 at No. 2 singles. She is now 13-1 on the season overall in singles matches.
 
The team of Nadiia Konieva and Sara Simonova was also recognized Feb. 18, earning Horizon League Doubles Team of the Week. The honor is the third of Konieva and Simonova's career, but the first together as a team.
 
The tandem posted a 2-0 week with wins over Marquette and UChicago. The duo overcame a 4-2 deficit at No. 2 singles to defeat Marquette Friday, fighting off two match points before claiming the 7-5 decision. On Sunday, they took down the Maroons No. 2 team by a final score of 6-3 to improve to 9-2 as a team on the year.
 
ROSTER MAKEUP
The current roster comes from an extensive background of eight different countries and will consist of seven returners, one sophomore transfer, and one freshman. Leading the way for the returners is Nadiaa Konieva, who last season was named All-Horizon League Second Team following a campaign in which she stepped up to play No. 1 singles as well as continuing her role as a part of the No. 1 doubles squad. Konieva led the Panthers in doubles victories with 16 and finished just one off the team lead in total victories with 25 (nine singles wins).
 
Emilia Durska concluded the campaign with a 14-13 singles record and a 12-18 doubles ledger, with her 26 total victories tied for the team lead. Durska competed from No. 2 through No. 5 in singles play and No. 2/No. 3 in doubles. Nikola Nikolajeva put together a stellar first season with the Panthers, tying for the overall team lead in victories with 26. She finished with a 12-10 record in singles play as well as a 14-9 mark in doubles action, which was played mostly at No. 2 singles and the majority of the year at No. 1 doubles before an injury slowed her near the end of the spring slate.
 
THE COACH
Third-year head coach Mark Goldin and his team had to battle through and overcome numerous injuries a year ago, finishing with an 8-17 overall mark that yielded a strong finish - knocking off third-seeded Oakland in the Horizon League Championships before falling in the semifinals to eventual league champion YSU. The Panthers also added a historic result, posting MKE's first-ever win over Marquette with a 4-3 decision in February. The team is also coming off a very successful fall campaign, finishing with cumulative records of 24-15 as a team in singles action for the fall and 18-9 in doubles play.
 
Goldin is a fixture in the Milwaukee tennis community and was named the head coach of the Panthers in August, 2023, following a very successful run as the head coach at Cardinal Stritch University and as the assistant general manager at Elite Sports Club in Mequon.

No stranger to the Panthers, Goldin served as an assistant with the program from 2009 through 2012, helping the team improve from near the bottom of the league standings to a Top-3 program in his time. In fact, MKE went from five team wins, 39 individual wins and a 2-6 conference record in his first year to 13 team wins, 126 individual wins and a 6-2 Horizon League record for third place, the best in school history at the time.

FALL FESTIVITIES
The team is coming off a very successful fall 2025 campaign, competing at the Gopher Invitational, the Warhawk Fall Invite, and the Horizon League Individual Championships. Newcomer Nel Van Hout led the way, combining for 18 victories – going 8-1 in singles and 10-2 in doubles action. Emilia Durska was second with 12 total wins (4 singles/8 doubles). Nadiia Konieva and Nikola Nikolajeva were each 5-2 in singles, while Sara Simonova was 7-2 in doubles.
 
The Panthers went 24-15 as a team in singles action for the fall; 18-9 in doubles play.
 
HOME SWEET HOME
The Panthers have been very solid at home of late, going 32-19 over the past five-plus years, including a 10-3 mark in 2021.
 
UP NEXT
The Panthers hit the road for the next two outings, battling Northern Iowa Feb. 27 and Western Illinois Feb. 28.