University of Minnesota Athletics
Saturday, March 21
Piscataway, NJ
11:00 AM
University of Minnesota
at
Rutgers
Players Mentioned
/ Tennis
/ Tennis
Photo by: Claudia Staut
Gophers Head East for Big Ten Matchups at Rutgers, Maryland
3/20/2026 12:00:00 PM | Tennis
MINNEAPOLIS - The University of Minnesota tennis team hits the road for the second time in Big Ten play this season with matches against Rutgers and Maryland.
The Golden Gophers will travel to Piscataway, N.J. to face Rutgers (7-6) at 11 a.m. CT Saturday before taking on No. 47 Maryland (10-2) at 11 a.m. CT Sunday in College Park, Maryalnd.
The Season So Far
Minnesota opened the season with six straight wins, highlighted by a victory over Iowa State, before falling to Alabama and Colorado. The Gophers closed that weekend with a win over Drake and moved up to No. 53 in the rankings. Minnesota later dropped matches to Kansas and Kansas State, then swept a doubleheader against No. 49 Denver and St. Thomas before falling to No. 17 USC and No. 6 UCLA. The Gophers then lost road matches to Purdue and Indiana before returning home to defeat South Dakota 7-0 on March 18.
Scouting Rutgers
Minnesota and Rutgers have met 14 times in program history, with Minnesota leading the series 11-2. The Gophers won the most recent meeting, 4-0, on March 28, 2025. Rutgers won six of its first nine matches before losing two of its last three. The Scarlet Knights most recently defeated Cornell 4-0 on Monday, March 16. Rutgers is led by senior Mai Nguyen, who plays at No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles. She currently holds an International Tennis Federation (ITF) world ranking of No. 17.12.
Scouting Maryland
Minnesota and Maryland have met 16 times in program history, with the Terrapins holding a 9-7 lead. Maryland won the most recent matchup, 4-1, on March 30, 2025. Maryland opened the season with a seven-match win streak, including a victory over No. 70 Penn, and most recently earned a 4-2 win over No. 64 Oregon on March 6. The Terrapins are led by Oliwia Orlinska, who is ranked No. 110 in the ITA singles rankings and is off to a 16-6 start this season. Maryland is highlighted by its No. 1 doubles duo of Emma Ghiradato and Ema Kovacevic, who are ranked No. 37 in the ITA doubles rankings and are 15-5 on the season.
Magnificent Mia
Mia Liepert is 11-3 in singles during the spring season, competing at the No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 spots for the Gophers. She has won seven of her last nine matches, including a 6-4, 6-1 victory over No. 54 Mayu Crossley of UCLA. Liepert reached the 50-career win mark on March 16 with a 6-3, 2-6, 10-6 win over South Dakota's Selena Bird.
Schmitz Sisters
Minnesota senior captain Aiva Schmitz will compete against her sister, Stella Schmitz of Rutgers, this weekend. Stella Schmitz is a freshman who competes at the No. 4 and No. 5 singles spots for the Scarlet Knights.
How to Follow
Fans can follow each match on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram.
Rutgers is scheduled to livestream each match at this link. Fans can also follow the live stats of each match.
Maryland is scheduled to livestream each match at this link. Fans can also follow the live stats of each match.
Next On The Docket
The Gophers will host Michigan on March 27 and Michigan State on March 29 at the Baseline Tennis Center.
The Golden Gophers will travel to Piscataway, N.J. to face Rutgers (7-6) at 11 a.m. CT Saturday before taking on No. 47 Maryland (10-2) at 11 a.m. CT Sunday in College Park, Maryalnd.
The Season So Far
Minnesota opened the season with six straight wins, highlighted by a victory over Iowa State, before falling to Alabama and Colorado. The Gophers closed that weekend with a win over Drake and moved up to No. 53 in the rankings. Minnesota later dropped matches to Kansas and Kansas State, then swept a doubleheader against No. 49 Denver and St. Thomas before falling to No. 17 USC and No. 6 UCLA. The Gophers then lost road matches to Purdue and Indiana before returning home to defeat South Dakota 7-0 on March 18.
Scouting Rutgers
Minnesota and Rutgers have met 14 times in program history, with Minnesota leading the series 11-2. The Gophers won the most recent meeting, 4-0, on March 28, 2025. Rutgers won six of its first nine matches before losing two of its last three. The Scarlet Knights most recently defeated Cornell 4-0 on Monday, March 16. Rutgers is led by senior Mai Nguyen, who plays at No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles. She currently holds an International Tennis Federation (ITF) world ranking of No. 17.12.
Scouting Maryland
Minnesota and Maryland have met 16 times in program history, with the Terrapins holding a 9-7 lead. Maryland won the most recent matchup, 4-1, on March 30, 2025. Maryland opened the season with a seven-match win streak, including a victory over No. 70 Penn, and most recently earned a 4-2 win over No. 64 Oregon on March 6. The Terrapins are led by Oliwia Orlinska, who is ranked No. 110 in the ITA singles rankings and is off to a 16-6 start this season. Maryland is highlighted by its No. 1 doubles duo of Emma Ghiradato and Ema Kovacevic, who are ranked No. 37 in the ITA doubles rankings and are 15-5 on the season.
Magnificent Mia
Mia Liepert is 11-3 in singles during the spring season, competing at the No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 spots for the Gophers. She has won seven of her last nine matches, including a 6-4, 6-1 victory over No. 54 Mayu Crossley of UCLA. Liepert reached the 50-career win mark on March 16 with a 6-3, 2-6, 10-6 win over South Dakota's Selena Bird.
Schmitz Sisters
Minnesota senior captain Aiva Schmitz will compete against her sister, Stella Schmitz of Rutgers, this weekend. Stella Schmitz is a freshman who competes at the No. 4 and No. 5 singles spots for the Scarlet Knights.
How to Follow
Fans can follow each match on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram.
Rutgers is scheduled to livestream each match at this link. Fans can also follow the live stats of each match.
Maryland is scheduled to livestream each match at this link. Fans can also follow the live stats of each match.
Next On The Docket
The Gophers will host Michigan on March 27 and Michigan State on March 29 at the Baseline Tennis Center.
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