The Blugold men’s tennis team evened its season record at 5-5 with three victories during the weekend.

The ‘Golds blanked St. Ambrose Universtiy (Iowa) in McPhee on Friday, 7-0. Eau Claire claimed a pair of victories on Saturday, defeating Bethel College (Minn.) 5-2, and then topping St. Scholastica (Minn.) 6-1.

“As a team, we made the .500 mark, which was our number one goal,” coach Tracy Saloka said. “We were focused, intense and we played well. This weekend was a big confidence booster for us.”

Junior Steve Matuszewski went undefeated this weekend playing at No. 6 singles.

“Everybody got the individual wins we needed,” Matuszewski said. “We really stepped it up as a team.”

He said they came into the weekend thinking they needed to win at least two matches, but coming away with three wins was a big lift for them.

Matuszewski beat Joe Jennetten of St. Ambrose 6-0, 6-0 on Friday. He then beat Anthony Branitski of Bethel, 3-6, 7-6, 10-4. Matuszewski was also victorious against Ed Szymaczak of St. Scholastica on Saturday 6-2, 6-3.

Freshman Matt Widder went 2-1 during the weekend, and is more than satisfied with the team’s overall performance.

“We accomplished our goal and that was to get back to .500,” Widder said. “We desperately needed these wins. I lost a tough match at number 4 singles, but the bottom line is that our team wins.”

Freshman Jon Snodgrass went 3-0 playing at No. 4 singles and also paired up with his junior teammate Joe Johnston to go 3-0 in doubles play.

Snodgrass hurt his ankle in his first match of the year, forcing him to sit out until last weekend when the team traveled to Hamline University (Minn.).

“Last weekend was the first time Snodgrass and Johnston played together,” Saloka said. “They showed over the weekend that they are aware of each other’s strengths and weaknesses.”

Saloka said the teams they played this weekend had different styles and they adapted well.

Johnston played at No. 1 singles to claim two wins during the weekend and losing one match. Johnston topped Ryan McNeill of St. Ambrose, 6-3, 6-3. Johnston downed Charlie Ahrens from St. Scholastica, 7-6, 6-1, but fell to Mark Benson from Bethel, 6-2, 6-3.

The Blugolds look to improve their record against Winona State University Tuesday, March 13 in Winona, Minn.