FORT MYERS, Fla. – After winning the doubles point and jumping out to an early lead, the FGCU women's team (5-6) battled until the end but ultimately lost to Power Five opponent Penn State (4-7) by a 4-3 margin Thursday afternoon at the FGCU Tennis Complex.
 
Four of six singles matches were taken to the decisive third set and FGCU was able to split with the Nittany Lions, who were ranked T-47 by the ITA entering the season, but it was all too late as Penn State had already claimed the match after winning the first four in singles play.
 
"The girls competed hard today," said FGCU head coach Courtney Vernon. "It came down to a few points, and Penn State got the upper hand. We're making good progress and will continue to work hard every day."
 
In doubles play, Laura Falceto Font (Zaragoza, Spain/El Pilar Maristas Zaragoza) and Elizabeth Means (Washington, D.C./Wiregrass Ranch HS) won their third straight match and improved to 4-1 as they notched an impressive 6-2 win over Penn State's Daria Sapogova and Ekaterina Blik in the No. 3 position. Moments later, Julia Ascua (Santa Fe, Argentina/Domingo G. Silva) and Julianna Curtis (Tampa, Fla./Allendale Academy) continued to play well as a tandem as they improved to 5-0 in the No. 2 position and claimed the doubles point for FGCU with a 6-3 win against Jacqueline Zuhse and Katherine Whiteaway. With the point already decided, Joselyn Treyes Albarracin (Guayaquil, Ecuador/InterAmerican Academy) and Breana Stampfli (Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago/St. Jospeh's Convent) dropped their match, 6-4, to Devan McCluskey and Kimberley Surin in the top doubles spot.
 
Penn State was then able to seize the early momentum from FGCU in singles play after winning the first set in five of six matches. The Nittany Lions evened the score, 1-1, as Whiteaway registered a 6-2, 6-3 win against Means in No. 5 singles and took the lead with a 6-3, 7-5 win as Zuhse defeated Curtis in No. 4 singles. Later, Treyes Albarracin was down a set and trailed 4-5 in No. 2 singles, but battled back to win the last three games and force a decisive third set. However, the Ecuador native ran out of steam against a tough opponent as Blik won the match 6-1, 5-7, 6-2. In No. 1 singles, Stampfli also forced a third set after dropping the opening frame to Surin, but ultimately lost a hard-fought match by a 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 margin.
 
The Eagles were playing for pride in the end and showed just that as Ascua and Falceto Font, a pair of freshman for FGCU, each won three-set matches in No. 3 and No. 6 singles, respectively. Ascua battled back from a first-set loss to register a 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 win against McCluskey. Then, in the final match of the day, Falceto Font ended it with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 win against Samantha Tutelman.
 
THURSDAY RESULTS
Doubles
No. 1 Doubles: McCluskey/Surin (PSU) def. Stampfli/Treyes Albarracin (FGCU): 6-4
No. 2 Doubles: Ascua/Curtis (FGCU) def. Zuhse/Whiteaway (PSU): 6-3
No. 3 Doubles: Falceto Font/Means (FGCU) def. Sapogova/Blik (PSU): 6-2
 
Singles
No. 1 Singles: Surin (PSU) def. Stampfli (FGCU): 6-4, 3-6, 6-2
No. 2 Singles: Blik (PSU) def. Treyes Albarracin (FGCU): 6-1, 5-7, 6-2
No. 3 Singles: Ascua (FGCU) def. McCluskey (PSU): 3-6, 6-4, 6-3
No. 4 Singles: Zuhse (PSU) def. Curtis (FGCU): 6-3, 7-5
No. 5 Singles: Whiteaway (PSU) def. Means (FGCU): 6-2, 6-3
No. 6 Singles: Falceto Font (FGCU) def. Tutelman (PSU): 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
 
Order of Finish: Doubles (3, 2, 1); Singles (5, 4, 2, 1, 3, 6)
 
UP NEXT
FGCU will wrap up a seven-match home stand early next week by hosting Northern Arizona (7-6) Monday at 5 p.m. followed by Northern Illinois (5-4) Wednesday at 5 p.m. The following week, A-Sun competition will being with a road match at Lipscomb Thursday, March 24 at 11 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 29-26 overall record (.527) 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.