JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The 2nd-seeded FGCU women's tennis team (8-7) dropped a 4-2 decision in the ASUN Championship final to top-seed North Florida (17-7) as the Ospreys claimed their sixth-straight conference title Saturday afternoon.

"Today was a battle and UNF played very well," said head coach Courtney Vernon. "It did not go our way but the ladies battled hard. Sofia and Maja have been amazing leaders and I want to thank them for what they have given to this program. Also a special thank you to our fans and donors for being there and supporting us this year."

In doubles action, North Florida snagged court No. 2 first but FGCU fought back to take the next two and the 1-0 lead heading into singles. Fanny Norin (Stockholm, Sweden/Thoren Business School) and Alba Retortillo (Leon, Spain/ La Anunciata) claimed court No. 3, 6-4, while Maja Ornberg (Kil, Sweden/De la Gardiegymnasiet, Lidkoping) and Emma Bardet (Vichy, France/Long Beach State) pulled away in a tough 7-5 match on the top court. 

The Ospreys jumped ahead 2-1 after taking the top two courts before Ida Ferding (Vastera, Sweden/Akademi Bastad Gymnasium) tied the match at 2-2 with her win on court No. 4 (6-2, 6-3). UNF then claimed court No. 5 to regains ist lead (3-2) as the match would go into a one-hour rain delay. Coming out of the delay, the clinching point for UNF took three sets but arrived on court No. 3 en route to the 4-2 triumph.

Singles competition
1. Lucia Montano (UNF) def. ORNBERG, Maja (FGCU) 6-2, 6-1
2. Catherine Gulihur (UNF) def. BARDET, Emma (FGCU) 6-1, 6-4
3. Constanza Gorches (UNF) def. NORIN, Fanny (FGCU) 6-1, 4-6, 6-3
4. FERDING, Ida (FGCU) def. Summer Yardley (UNF) 6-2, 6-3
5. Annabelle Davis (UNF) def. PEREZ, Sofia (FGCU) 6-4, 7-5
6. Valentina Mariotto (UNF) vs. RETORTILLO, Alba (FGCU) 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 4-3, unfinished

Doubles competition
1. BARDET, Emma/ORNBERG, Maja (FGCU) def. Constanza Gorches/Lucia Montano (UNF) 7-5
2. Catherine Gulihur/Valentina Mariotto (UNF) def. PEREZ, Sofia/FERDING, Ida (FGCU) 6-2
3. RETORTILLO, Alba/NORIN, Fanny (FGCU) def. Annabelle Davis/Summer Yardley (UNF) 6-4

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

FOLLOW ALONG
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E.A.G.L.E. CAMPAIGN
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 85-64 overall record (.570) and 36-10 conference record (.782).

#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 40 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Eight FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 21, 2020-21), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2021) 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 in their sport. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.50 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 23 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall, 2020 Spring, and 2020 Fall 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.