HAMMOND, La. – In a match that featured three three-set singles matches, Southeastern Louisiana earned a 5-2 victory over Nicholls in Southland Conference women's tennis action Sunday afternoon at the Southeastern Tennis Complex.
Flory Bierma and
Katya Cornejo won in both singles and doubles play to help SLU (6-10, 3-5 Southland) improve its postseason hopes. Nicholls fell to 3-13 overall and 1-7 in league action.
After taking the doubles point, SLU dropped first sets on four of the six singles courts. In addition to Bierma and Cornejo's victories,
Putri Insani and
Bernadette Dornieden rallied for three-set singles wins to help Southeastern earn the victory.
"We had a tough practice yesterday and we weren't doing the things necessary to be successful," Southeastern head coach
Jason Hayes commented. "We bounced back well and really stepped up with a total team effort. Nicholls is a strong, well-coached team and we're pleased with the effort. We have a lot of talent on our team, but we don't always make the best decisions on court. When we play smart like we did today, we can have a lot of success."
The Lions took a 1-0 lead in doubles play. On No. 2,
Ceci Mercier and
Vicky Scholz (6-1, 6-1 Southland) handled the Nicholls duo of Daphne Haverkamp and Mariia Kozachok, 6-3. SLU clinched the point on No. 3, as Bierma and Cornejo (4-7, 2-2 Southland) held off Antonio Roessli and Marina Vigil for a 6-4 win.
Bierma (5-8, 3-4 Southland) put the Lions ahead, 2-0, with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Kozachok on the No. 5 court. Shortly thereafter, Cornejo (3-7, 1-4 Southland) earned her first league singles win on No. 6, pushing the lead to 3-0 by defeating Haverkamp, 6-3, 6-1.
The Colonels picked up their first point with a straight-set victory on No. 2. Insani (8-5, 5-3 Southland) then clinched the match by rallying past Stephanie Barnett, 6-7 (2-7), 6-2, 6-1, on the No. 1 court.
Nicholls cut the margin to 4-2 after Roessli outlasted Mercier (6-5, 3-4 Southland), 6-3, 2-6, 6-3 on No. 4. Dornieden (3-7, 2-5 Southland) earned a 0-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7-5) comeback victory over Vigil on the No. 3 court.
The Lions will return to action on Friday, hosting Sam Houston State at 1 p.m. at the Southeastern Tennis Complex.
40 LOVE CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the tennis program are encouraged to join the 40 Love Club. Lion tennis alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
All membership fees and donations to both the 40 Love Club and S Club (tennis) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern tennis program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
SOCIAL MEDIA
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