ORLANDO, Fla. – The FGCU women's tennis team (3-4, 1-1 ASUN) claimed a thrilling 4-3 win over Kennesaw State (5-8, 0-2 ASUN) Saturday afternoon at the USTA National Campus.
The match was scheduled to take place in DeLand, Fla., on the campus of Stetson but wet court conditions forced both teams to play at the USTA site.
"Today was a battle against a team that had improved a lot since we last played them," said head coach
Courtney Vernon. "We played singles first because of the weather but it came down to the doubles point; the ladies played with a lot of energy. Today was a step and we will continue learning every time we compete."
Right from the start, FGCU took a 2-0 lead in singles play thanks to wins from
Fanny Norin (Stockholm, Sweden/Thoren Business School) and
Alba Retortillo (Leon, Spain/ La Anunciata), both in straight sets. On court No. 4, Norin cruised to a 6-2, 6-0 win, while Retortillo captured a 6-3, 6-3 win on court No. 6. KSU snagged the following court, but
Ida Ferding (Vastera, Sweden/Akademi Bastad Gymnasium), on court No. 5, bumped FGCU's lead to 3-1 with a 6-2, 6-4 triumph.
The Owls continued to battle back, claiming the top two courts to make it a 3-3 match heading into doubles.
The momentum began to favor the Eagles as the team of Ferding and
Sofia Perez (Alajuela, Costa Rica/Florida Virtual) kicked off the doubles scoring with a 6-2 victory on court No. 2. The top court remained close at 5-5 but the clinching point arrived on court No. 3 as Retortillo and
Lourdes Ramalle (Buenos Aires, Argentina/Portland) walked away with a 6-4 win to give FGCU a 4-3 final. They are now 4-3 overall in doubles play.
Up Next
FGCU will host Stetson on Saturday, Mar. 27 at 2 p.m.
Upcoming Matches (Sunday, Mar. 21)
UNF @ Stetson (11 am)
Liberty @ Lipscomb (11am)
Bellarmine @North Alabama (3pm)
ASUN Standings
South Division
| Place |
Team |
ASUN |
Overall |
| 1. |
Stetson |
1-0 |
6-4 |
| 2. |
North Florida |
1-0 |
8-6 |
| 3. |
FGCU |
1-1 |
3-4 |
| 4. |
Kennesaw State |
0-2 |
5-8 |
North Division
| Place |
Team |
ASUN |
Overall |
| 1. |
Liberty |
1-0 |
11-3 |
| 2. |
Lipscomb |
1-0 |
6-6 |
| 3. |
North Alabama |
0-1 |
4-9 |
| 4. |
Bellarmine |
0-1 |
0-10 |
Singles competition
1. Taylor Dean (KSU) def.
Maja Ornberg (FGCU) 6-0, 7-5
2. Ji Youn Lee (KSU) def.
Emma Bardet (FGCU) 1-6, 6-3, 6-2
3. Paola Cortez (KSU) def.
Sofia Perez (FGCU) 6-3, 3-6, 6-1
4.
Fanny Norin (FGCU) def. Valentina Taddia (KSU) 6-2, 6-0
5.
Ida Ferding (FGCU) def. Sofia Pinedo (KSU) 6-2, 6-4
6.
Alba Retortillo (FGCU) def. Soomin Kim (KSU) 6-3, 6-3
Doubles competition
1.
Maja Ornberg/
Emma Bardet (FGCU) vs. Taylor Dean/Paola Cortez (KSU) unfinished
2.
Sofia Perez/
Ida Ferding (FGCU) def. Ji Youn Lee/Valentina Taddia (KSU) 6-2
3.
Alba Retortillo/
Lourdes Ramalle (FGCU) def. Sofia Pinedo/Soomin Kim (KSU) 6-4
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3); Singles (4,6,1,5,2,3)
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.
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IT TAKES A TEAM to achieve our newest goal - a $10 million campaign to address student-athlete needs in continued academic success, life skills, mental health, nutrition, and strength and conditioning as well as departmental needs in facility expansion and improvement as well as mentoring and leadership training for coaches and staff. The name embodies our mission and the purpose of the E.A.G.L.E. Campaign - Eagle Athletics Generating Lifetime Excellence. Join Our Team and pledge your gift today to help the Eagles of tomorrow!
HEAD COACH COURTNEY VERNON
FGCU's women's tennis team is led by three-time ASUN Coach of the Year Courtney Vernon (8th season)
who led the Eagles to back-to-back ASUN regular-season crowns in her fifth season in 2018. She has mentored her student-athletes into earning 59 ASUN All-Conference and All-Academic honors, including 2014, 2016 and 2017 ASUN Freshman of the Year as well as the 2016, 2017 and 2019 Scholar-Athlete of the Year and the 2018 Player of the Year. Vernon has led the Green and Blue to an 80-61 overall record (.567) and 33-9 conference record (.786).
#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April 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.
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 85 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 13 seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just nine seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 39 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport – including women's basketball (No. 24, 2019-20) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as three of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate (APR) in their sport and have had the highest percentage of teams so honored from these two groups over each of the past three years. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.46 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 22 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall and 2020 Spring semesters each saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 – being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
