FORT MYERS, Fla. — After securing the doubles point, the Florida Gulf Coast University women's tennis team won three singles matches to earn a 4–3 victory over St. John's in its season opener Friday afternoon at the FGCU Tennis Complex. The win extended the Eagles' all-time record against the Red Storm to 4–0.
"This was a good match to start our season," FGCU head coach
Courtney Vernon said. "St. John's is a very disciplined team that fights very hard and is well coached. The ladies did a great job today fighting and staying in the matches. We are looking forward to playing again tomorrow."
The Eagles (1–0) opened the day by claiming the doubles point.
June Bjork and
Africa Burillo earned a 6–2 win, followed by a 6–2 victory from
Nora Svensson and
Anjali Kotecha to give FGCU a 1–0 lead.
St. John's got on the scoreboard in singles play when
Cecilie Johannessen Maeland fell 6–1, 6–3 on court No. 3. FGCU responded as Bjork regained the lead for the Eagles with a 6–2, 6–2 win on court No. 3.
The Red Storm tied the match when
Sabarina Jaramillo dropped a 6–3, 7–6 (6) decision on court No. 4. Svensson then put FGCU back in front with a 7–6 (4), 6–2 victory on court No. 1.
St. John's answered once again as
Ashley Matz pushed the match to three sets but ultimately fell 6–1, 5–7, 6–3. With the match on the line, Kotecha used the energy from the home crowd to rally after dropping the first set 6–3, closing out the match with a 6–3, 6–2 comeback to seal the 4–3 win.
FGCU returns to action Saturday morning at 10 a.m. when it hosts Miami (Ohio).
