The Luther College men’s and women’s tennis teams had very strong performances this year at their respective tournaments over Sept. 19 and 20. The men’s team played at the American Rivers Conference Individual Tournament in Waverly, Iowa, and Waterloo, Iowa. The women’s team competed in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Midwest Regional Championship in St. Peter, Minn.
The men dominated in their tournament, winning the top three flights, or brackets, of singles and sweeping the podium in Flight A doubles. The men took home a total of 11 medals across singles and doubles.
Joao Benvenutti (‘26) had an especially stellar performance, claiming the Flight A titles in both singles and doubles, along with his doubles partner Abhay Chhabra (‘26).
“I feel really good about the tournament and about my performance. I am so happy with how the Luther team played and we really showed up in the important moments,” Benvenutti said about the weekend.
This was the last appearance the Norse will make at the tournament. In early June, Luther College announced that it would be joining the Midwest Conference, beginning with the 2026-27 academic year.
“It’s a little strange for me because we did this tournament all four years that I was a Luther tennis player, but for some of the newer players, they don’t know any different,” assistant coach Peter Heryla (‘24) said. “It’s unique because Luther Tennis will never play in a tournament like this again. Our new conference has an individual tournament, but it’s structured differently from the A-R-C.”
The men will still play conference matches this spring season, and both the men’s and women’s teams will play in the A-R-C NCAA Automatic Qualifier tournament that decides who qualifies for Nationals.
“Our men’s and women’s players have done a great job of approaching every A-R-C match like a normal match, instead of focusing on things out of our control like ‘final conference matches’ or ‘matches against teams that we might not play next year,’” Heryla added.
At the ITA Championship, the women also had a successful weekend. Abby Ostermann (‘26) and Julia Moreno (‘26) both made the round of 16 for singles, with 96 competitors to start. However, Ostermann didn’t have too many expectations going into her first match.
“We know the competition’s really, really good and we know that sometimes you get a lot of tough matches when you’re playing in this tournament,” Ostermann said. “I was mostly just excited to get to play some other teams and see how it goes.”
The women went 20-11 for the championship across singles and doubles. Despite the tough competition, Luther players left feeling proud of their performance.
“My second singles match on Friday was against this girl that destroyed me in the spring, so I really was like, well, hopefully I can just get a few games, and I ended up winning. It was a very good tournament, I was very proud of myself with how it went and how we were able to compete and hold our own against the tough competition,” Ostermann said.
Luther’s tennis program has a reputation for continued success, which is highlighted by the consistent wins by both the men and women at their conference championships. Those involved attribute a lot of this success to strong relationships within and across the teams. Ostermann is happy with the team bonding she’s seen this year, and Benvenutti echoed the sentiment for the men’s team.
“I feel like we’re all very close friends, not only teammates, and it really helps when you’re competing to feel supported by your teammates and feel that they truly want you to do well,” Ostermann said.
“It is just the beginning of the season and we already have really good bonding and really good energy when we are playing,” Benvenutti said.
This supportive environment translates across the teams, too. “When I was a Luther tennis player, one of my favorite parts about the tennis program was how our men’s and women’s teams functioned as one connected program instead of two separate ones,” remarked Heryla. “This season’s group is no different! It definitely plays into their performance and it actually makes both teams play better.”
According to Heryla, this was evident during the A-R-C and ITA weekend.
“I know that both teams were constantly exchanging scores with each other and asking for match updates. Some of the men’s players were even watching a women’s ITA match on their phones while we were getting a team dinner.”
The women’s last A-R-C tennis match is on Oct. 4 in Lincoln, Neb. against Nebraska Wesleyan. Then, they will compete in the women’s A-R-C Individual Tournament in Cedar Rapids on Oct. 10 and 11. The men concluded their fall season this past weekend with the men’s ITA Midwest Regional Championship in St. Peter, Minn.
Despite tough ITA matches and the approaching conference change, the teams can depend on the supportive environment they’ve created together. Heryla recognizes how the teams’ bond comes into play, on and off the court.
“For some of these players, the tennis team is a home away from home – they’ve come pretty far to be a part of our program. The support they give each other on and off the courts helps them in tennis and in life.”
