FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU women's tennis team (2-3) defeated Toledo (3-4) in a narrow 4-3 battle Friday afternoon at the FGCU Tennis Complex.

"Every time we get the opportunity to compete, we also grow, and we start trusting the plan more," said head coach Courtney Vernon. "Today was another step and we will continue to take more steps. We're looking forward to getting back on the court and training next week in preparation for our conference season."

FGCU snagged a 1-0 lead right out of the gates in doubles play. The tandem of Sofia Perez (Alajuela, Costa Rica/Florida Virtual) and Ida Ferding (Vastera, Sweden/Akademi Bastad Gymnasium) claimed a 6-1 win on the top court before Maja Ornberg (Kil, Sweden/De la Gardiegymnasiet, Lidkoping) and Jessica Hadipoernomo Wira (Semarang, Indonesia/Maria Regina) sealed the point on court No. 2, 6-3.

In singles play, momentum grew from the Rockets' side as they reeled off two-straight wins to go up by one (2-1). Ornberg tied the match, 2-2, cruising to a straight-set (6-4, 6-4) win on court No. 1. Soon after, Toledo once again reclaimed the lead after taking court No. 2 in a three-set nail-biter.

Down 3-2, FGCU's Lourdes Ramalle knotted the affair with her straight-set (7-5, 6-3) triumph on court No. 5 as Ferding put the final touches on the match, clinching the win for FGCU in three sets. The sophomore dropped her first set, 4-6, but battled back to win the next two, 6-4 and 6-2.

Up Next  
The Eagles will take a break until Mar. 19 when they go to North Florida (6-4) for an 11 a.m. matchup.

Singles competition
1. ORNBERG, Maja (FGCU) def. Cassie Alcala (Toledo) 6-4, 6-4
2. Sloane Teske (Toledo) def. PEREZ, Sofia (FGCU) 3-6, 6-4, 6-4
3. Eileen Carney (Toledo) def. RETORTILLO, Alba (FGCU) 6-4, 6-2
4. FERDING, Ida (FGCU) def. Julia Kuszynski (Toledo) 4-6, 6-4, 6-2
5. RAMALLE, Lourdes (FGCU) def. Patricia Panta (Toledo) 7-6, 6-3
6. Shalini Tallamraju (Toledo) def. WIRA, Jessica (FGCU) 6-2, 6-4

Doubles competition
1. FERDING, Ida/PEREZ, Sofia (FGCU) def. Julia Kuszynski/Sloane Teske (Toledo) 6-1
2. Laura Morera/Patricia Panta (Toledo) def. RETORTILLO, Alba/RAMALLE, Lourdes (FGCU) 7-5
3. ORNBERG, Maja/WIRA, Jessica (FGCU) def. Christina Fuller/Cassie Alcala (Toledo) 6-3

Order of finish: Doubles (1,3,2); Singles (3,6,1,2,5,4)

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 a 79-60 overall record (.568) and 32-8 conference record (.800).

#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 84 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 38 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.