OWATONNA, Minn. -- The Ripon College women's tennis team split a pair of matches during its weekend trip to Minnesota, falling 4-3 to the University of Northwestern before bouncing back with a 6-1 victory over Buena Vista on Saturday.

Ripon 3, Northwestern 4

Ripon came up just short in a tightly contested match against Northwestern, despite a strong showing in singles play.

The Red Hawks were swept in doubles competition, putting them in an early 0-1 deficit. In singles, Ripon responded with three victories, highlighted by a thrilling three-set win at No. 1 from sophomore Josie Rondestvedt (Altoona, Wis., Altoona HS). After dropping the second set, Rondestvedt rallied to secure the match in a 10-point tiebreak.

Senior Catherine Skoglund (Roberts, Wis., St. Croix Central HS) earned a straight-set victory at No. 4 singles, while senior Allison Pavlovec (Decorah, Iowa, Decorah HS) added another point with a hard-fought win at No. 5. However, Northwestern secured the remaining singles matches to narrowly edge Ripon.

Ripon 6, Buena Vista 1

Ripon rebounded in a big way on Sunday, winning five of six singles matches to cruise past Buena Vista.

After splitting doubles play, the Red Hawks carried momentum into singles, where they dominated the lineup. Rondestvedt set the tone with a convincing straight-set win at No. 1, while junior Jessi Griepentrog (Freedom, Wis., Fox Valley Lutheran HS) battled back after dropping the first set to win in a match tiebreak at No. 3.

Skoglund, Pavlovec and sophomore Isabella Engstrom (Ripon, Wis., Ripon HS) each earned decisive straight-set victories, helping Ripon secure the team win.

Ripon moves to 10-15 overall on the season and will look to carry that momentum into its final stretch of matches.