Cyclone tennis set to begin season at Minnesota

Dom Tornabane, Sports Reporter

January 22, 2026

Official Iowa State Tennis Racket Bag during the Cyclone Invite at Ames Fitness Center, Oct 3, 2025, Ames, Iowa.

The Iowa State tennis team will begin its first regular-season match Friday, traveling north to the Baseline Tennis Center in Minneapolis to face the Minnesota Gophers after a good run at the Jayhawk Invitational in Lawrence, Kansas.

The Cyclones were able to come out with a winning record from Lawrence, going 16-12 against three opponents over three days.

The Cyclones look to improve upon their previous year’s performances, as they have seen strong positive progression over the last year. They went from 4-17 in the 2023-24 season to 11-11 last season, a seven-game increase in total wins.

The matchup against Minnesota will be a significant test for the Cyclones, as tradition has not favored them over time; Minnesota holds a 35-3 record against the Cyclones.

This will be the second matchup Jaron Maestas and his team will play against Minnesota during his tenure as head coach of Cyclone tennis.

Last year, the Cyclones lost to the Gophers 4-3 in a tightly contested battle early in the season at the Iowa State Tennis Facility on Feb. 2, 2025.

This season, Iowa State has an average World Tennis Number (WTN) of 16.14, which is similar to Minnesota’s average of 17.64.

Sophomore Julia Camblor will be one of the players competing in Minneapolis on Friday and carries a WTN of 16.41. Camblor has been highlighted for having strong potential as an underclassman and hopes to maintain that momentum against the Gophers.

Following the match against Minnesota, the Cyclones will take a week off before taking on Wichita State at home Jan. 31, then facing St. Thomas at home to wrap up the two-meet homestand.

The Cyclones will then travel to UNLV in Las Vegas on Friday, Feb. 6, as well as host Illinois in their second Big Ten matchup of the spring season.

On Feb. 15, the Cyclones will take on the Iowa Hawkeyes in one of the most well-known rivalries in the country at the Ames Tennis Center in Ames, Iowa, which summarizes the next five matches for the Cyclones after facing the Gophers.

The match against Minnesota will begin at 10 a.m. Friday.

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