FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU women's tennis team came from behind to defeat in-state rival UCF 4-3 on Saturday afternoon at the FGCU Tennis Complex, marking the first time in program history the Eagles earned a victory against the Knights. With the win, FGCU improved to 2-2 on the season and came out on top for the second-straight match while UCF fell to 2-1.
 
"It was a great day for the ladies and I am so proud of this group," said FGCU head coach Courtney Vernon. "They fought so hard and stayed focused. This is a very good accomplishment for our program and we look forward to building off of it in future matches."
 
The Knights entered the dual-match with a perfect record and had only dropped a total of three games in doubles competition this season. However, the Green and Blue came out and jumped all over UCF as they won a pair of lopsided matches to claim the doubles point against the in-state foe. The FGCU duo of Julia Ascúa (Santa Fe, Argentina/Domingo G. Silva) and Julianna Curtis (Tampa, Fla./Allendale Academy) defeated UCF's Cortney Cesarini and Natalia Serrano, 6-1, in No. 2 doubles. Minutes later, Breana Stampfli (Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago/St. Joseph's Convent) and Joselyn Treyes Albarracin (Guayaquil, Ecuador/InterAmerican Academy) teamed up to take down Sophia Baptista and Emilia Granstrom, 6-2, in No. 1 doubles. The third and final No. 3 doubles match featuring Elizabeth Means (Washington, D.C./Wiregrass Ranch HS) and Alexandra Landert (Zurich, Switzerland/Seton Hall) versus Caroline Eberhart and Monica Matias was knotted up at 4-4 but did not record a result as FGCU had already claimed the point.
 
The momentum quickly turned at the start of singles play as UCF claimed the first three matches to take a 3-1 lead and come within a point of winning its third-straight match to start the season. Serrano defeated Curtis (6-2, 6-0) in No. 5 singles, followed by a pair of wins from the opponents in No. 3 and No. 2 singles as Granstrom defeated Means (2-6, 6-2, 6-0) while Baptista defeated Ascúa (6-3, 4-6, 6-3). However, FGCU never wavered as they fought to win the final three matches of the afternoon and earn the dual-match victory in dramatic fashion. With her back against the wall in No. 4 singles, Treyes Albarracin responded from a first-set loss to claim the second set in a tiebreak and ultimately win the match (4-6, 7-6 (7-1), 6-1) to keep the Eagles alive. Falceto Font followed her teammate and fellow freshman's gutsy performance with a straight-set victory against Matias (7-5, 6-3) in No. 6 singles. Then, with the match on the line, Stampfli came from behind to defeat Eberhart in the final two sets of No. 1 singles competition and helped lead FGCU to its first-ever victory against the Knights.
 
SATURDAY RESULTS
Doubles
No. 2 Doubles: Ascúa/Curtis (FGCU) def. Cesarini/Serrano (UCF): 6-1
No. 1 Doubles: Stampfli/Treyes Albarracin (FGCU) def. Baptista/Granstrom (UCF): 6-2
No. 3 Doubles: Landert/Means (FGCU) vs. Eberhart/Matias (UCF): 4-4, DNF
 
Singles
No. 5 Singles: Serrano (UCF) def. Curtis (FGCU): 6-2, 6-0
No. 3 Singles: Granstrom (UCF) def. Means (FGCU): 2-6, 6-2, 6-0
No. 2 Singles: Baptista (UCF) def. Ascúa (FGCU): 6-3, 4-6, 6-3
No. 4 Singles: Treyes Albarracin (FGCU) def. Cesarini (UCF): 4-6, 7-6 (7-1), 6-1
No. 6 Singles: Falceto Font (FGCU) def. Matias (UCF): 7-5, 6-3
No. 1 Singles: Stampfli (FGCU) def. Eberhart (UCF): 4-6, 6-2, 6-2

UP NEXT
FGCU will embark on a North Carolina road trip as they compete against Elon on Friday, Feb. 19 at 1:30 p.m. before traveling east to play N.C. State on Saturday, Feb. 20 at 9 a.m.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-date coverage of FGCU women's tennis, follow us on Twitter @FGCU_WTEN and visit www.FGCUAthletics.com where full recaps and results will be available.
 
HEAD COACH COURTNEY VERNON
FGCU's women's tennis team is led by Courtney Vernon, whose second season under the helm saw the Eagles finish third in the conference standings with the program's first-ever appearance in the Atlantic Sun Championship Final. She has produced nine A-Sun All-Conference selections and the 2014 A-Sun Freshman of the Year. She has led the Green and Blue to a 26-22 overall record (.542) and 10-4 conference record (.714) in her two years at FGCU.
 
SUPPORT THE CAUSE 
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.