DENVER – One of the biggest, and most successful, classes of seniors in MSU Denver tennis history will be recognized on Senior Day, before Saturday's 11 a.m. match against Hawaii-Hilo at the Assembly Athletic Complex.
 
"We have seven seniors who are, or have, graduated, which is awesome," MSU Denver coach Josh Graetz said. "At the end of the day, that's the final and most important goal. I'm looking forward to honoring those players."
 
The seniors include men's players David Kijak, Billy McDemott and Carlos Pinedo as well as women's players Marie Cool, Kinsey Fields, Isabel Heras and Kayla Myburgh.
 
Kijak and McDermott are fifth-year seniors, while Pinedo is playing his second season with the Roadrunners.
 
"Billy and David started in the program in my first year as coach," Graetz said. "They've been through all the highs and lows with me. I've been fortunate to watch their development as tennis players and as people, and I'm excited to see what they'll do in the community. The same with Carlos, who I've been fortunate to work with for two years and who is also a heck of a player."
 
Kijak has a career singles record of 34-27, and a career doubles record of 25-25. His singles winning percentage of .557 ranks 25^th in program history. This year, he and teammate Juho Kantola are ranked 44^th in Division II in doubles with a record of 8-2. A two-time Academic All-PacWest selection, he's also a D2ADA Academic Achievement Award winner and a six-time member of the MSU Denver Athletic Director's Honor Roll.
 
McDermott was All-Pacific West Conference third team in doubles in 2022. He's 46-21 for his career in doubles, including 17-3 this season. His doubles wins total is 12^th in program history while his doubles winning percentage of .687 ranks 14^th. He also has a career record of 30-19 in singles, including 8-9 this season, and his career singles winning percentage of .612 is 22^nd in program history. A two-time Academic All-PacWest selection, he's a two-year member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and a four-time selection to the MSU Denver Athletic Director's Honor Roll.
 
Pinedo was named to the All-PacWest third team in singles in 2022. He has a career singles record of 24-15 at MSU Denver, including 8-8 this season, and his winning percentage of .615 would rank 21^st in program history but he is six wins short of qualifying. He's 26-16 for his career in doubles at MSU Denver, including 10-8 this year, and his doubles winning percentage of .619 would rank 22^nd in program history but he is four wins short of qualifying. As a college player, including two seasons at Division II Coker (S.C.), he has 36 singles wins and 34 doubles wins.
 
For the women, Myburgh is in her fourth season, Cool and Heras have played three seasons each as transfers, and Fields is in her lone season.
 
"Kayla was one of my very first recruits, and she is a good player and just a lovely human being," Graetz said. "Isabel and Marie have both spent three years with me and are fifth-year seniors doing their master's programs right now. We'll miss both of them in many ways – they are great doubles players and great competitors. And Kinsey has left a real mark on the program. She's a culture-builder and a very hard worker who has made our program better. I'm looking forward to her joining me as a graduate assistant in the fall."
 
Cool has a career doubles record of 42-24, including 13-7 this year, and a career singles record of 36-27, including 11-10 this season. She's tied for 13^th in program history in doubles wins and ranks 12^th in doubles winning percentage at .636. In singles, she's tied for 18^th in program history in wins, and ranks 17^th in winning percentage at .571. She is a two-time Academic All-Pac West selection, a past Student-Athlete Advisory Committee representative and a four-time selection to the MSU Denver Athletic Director's Honor Roll.
 
Fields joined MSU Denver as a transfer from Washburn (Kan.) and has made an instant impact. She's 12-5 in doubles while playing with Heras, and that pair is ranked No. 35 in Division II and is 9-4 while playing at the No. 1 position. She is 9-9 in singles, while playing in the Nos. 1, 2 and 3 positions. As a college player she has 30 singles wins and 58 winds in doubles. Academically, she made the MSU Denver Athletic Director's Honor Roll in her first semester with the program.
 
Heras, one of MSU Denver's top doubles players in recent seasons, has been nationally-ranked and earned All-PacWest honors during the past three seasons while playing with three different partners. She was All-PacWest second team in doubles in 2021 and third team in 2022, and she and Fields are ranked 35^th this year. Heras is 44-19 in doubles at MSU Denver, including 12-5 this season, and ranks seventh in program history in doubles wins and doubles winning percentage at .698. In singles, perhaps the queen of the three-set match, she has a career singles record at MSU Denver of 29-36, including 9-10 at No. 1. She is a two-time Academic All-PacWest selection, a past Student-Athlete Advisory Committee representative and is a five-time member of the MSU Denver Athletic Director's Honor Roll. And, going way back, she was the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference's Co-Freshman of the Year in 2019 (at the former Dixie State). She has 53 career doubles wins and 38 career singles wins.
 
Myburgh has been the ultimate team player while compiling a career singles record of 23-16, including 3-1 this season, and a 28-15 mark in doubles, including 5-2 this year. Her singles winning percentage of .590 would rank 15^th in program history, but she is seven wins short of qualifying, and her doubles winning percentage of .651 would rank 11^th all-time but she is two wins short of qualifying. She is a two-time Academic All-PacWest selection, a D2ADA Academic Achievement Award winner, a past Student-Athlete Advisory Committee representative and a six-time member of the MSU Denver Athletic Director's Honor Roll.
 
Beyond the pre-dual festivities, some pretty important tennis will take place afterwards.
 
Fighting for position in the PacWest rankings that will ultimately determine seeding for the league tournament, the 33^rd-ranked MSU Denver (12-3) men are fourth, with Hawaii-Hilo (3-8) ninth. Eight teams qualify for the PacWest men's tournament, and Hilo will be seeking revenge for MSU Denver's 4-1 win in Fresno, Calif., on March 19 – it was the Vulcans' sixth dual in seven days.
 
For the women, MSU Denver (12-6) is seventh despite losing last week to ninth-ranked Colorado Mesa, and Hawaii-Hilo (6-7) is 10^th. Twelve teams qualify for the PacWest women's tournament.
 
"It's going to be a good matchup for both sides and we're looking forward to it," Graetz said. "Both teams are going to have to come ready to go. There are going to be some distractions because of Senior Day, and hopefully we are able to focus on the task at hand. Hopefully playing at home and at altitude suits us.
 
"Hilo is a bit of an unknown for the ladies, but we do know they have a deep roster. For the guys, even though we beat Hilo a few weeks back, they are going to be a more well-rested team. Their ranking in the conference doesn't do them justice. It's a tough program and they'll be looking for revenge."
 
The men have had added distractions this week, moving up two spots in the PacWest rankings, down two spots in the national rankings and then the announcement that they are among six contenders for four spots in the national tournament out of the West Region.
 
"We've got to focus on the task at hand," Graetz said. "We have two more (regular-season) matches, with Hawaii-Hilo and then at Colorado Mesa next weekend. We can't be focused on rankings, or whether we've gone up or down in the nation or the region. All we can control is playing against Hilo and Mesa, and that's where our focus needs to be."