ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – Taking on their highest-ranked opponent this season, the Georgia College & State University Women's Tennis team (12-2, 1-1 PBC) had a seven-match win streak halted by No. 8 Flagler College (10-3, 1-0 PBC) 6-1 on the road Friday.
The Saints took the doubles point with wins in the first and third slots. In second doubles, Ashton Morrison (Cumming, Georgia) and Jada Young (Hilton Head Island, South Carolina) teamed for a hard-fought 7-5 win over Laura Jipescu and Eryka Kruk. Morrison and Young are now 8-5 this season.
In first doubles, Emma Fleming (Suwanee, Georgia) and Chiara Santoro (Santa Ursula, Spain) teamed for a 6-3 loss to the national No. 18 pairing of Dana Heimen and Luisa Hrda. Third doubles saw a 6-4 loss for Sofia Shing (Auckland, New Zealand) and Shradha Chhabra (New Delhi, India) to Florencia Massardo Brain and Nadja Meier.
The Saints doubled their advantage with a win in first singles to start. Shing came up short in an upset bid against No. 5 Hrda 6-2, 6-1. No. 44 Heimen then beat Fleming 6-0, 7-6[4] in the third slot. Flagler clinched the team victory next, as Morrison lost to Jipescu in fifth singles, 6-2, 2-6, 6-1.
No. 6 Meier topped Young in the second slot with a pair of 7-5 sets. In sixth singles, Chhabra lost to Charlotta Buss 4-6, 6-3, 10-5. Santoro closed the day on a high note, beating Kruk in fourth singles in a 7-6[3], 7-6[6] battle. With the victory, Santoro stays perfect in singles play on the season at 14-0.
The Bobcats are back in action Sunday, March 26 at 2 p.m., hosting Georgia Southwestern State University.
Owning the top Academic Success Rate among public schools in Division II, the Georgia College Department of Athletics sponsors 11 varsity athletic programs at the NCAA Division II level. GCSU Athletics has won three-straight Presidents' Awards for Academic Excellence, and are two-time winners of both the PBC Commissioner's Cup and the PBC Institution of the Year Sportsmanship Award. As a Division II program, Bobcat Athletics prides itself on balancing the life of the student-athlete, evidenced by the teams' continued appearances in post-season competition as well as high-level academic success and community-service involvement. Bobcat Athletics embodies the mantra of "Graduating Champions for Life." Sign up at @GCSUBobcats on all social media outlets for up-to-the-minute reports.
