Yi Ching Chen came from behind in the third set to clinch the Eagles' win over EKU
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The third-ranked Embry-Riddle women's tennis team gritted out a tough 4-3 victory over NCAA I foe Eastern Kentucky to improve to 7-1 on the year, Tuesday at the Crotty Tennis Complex. The match, played according to NCAA I rules where the three doubles matches are scored as one point, lasted five hours and saw the Eagles take two doubles and three singles matches en route to the win.
“This is the best women's match I've ever seen,” ERAU Head Coach Dave Paschal said of the Eagles' longest match of the season. “Everyone fought hard; no one gave up the will to win.”
Josefine Strom and
Yi Ching Chen began the scoring for ERAU with an 8-6 win over Kristina Labeja and Melissa Gerritsen at No. 1 doubles.
Ekaterina Kamendova and
Rocio Frej Vitalle assured the Eagles of the doubles point with an 8-4 defeat of Amandine Fawsi and Saioa Oscoz at the second doubles spot, but the Colonels avoided the doubles sweep with Milena Poffo and Carmen Rodriguez' 8-6 win over
Kristina Marova and
Paola Montero.
It took three hours for either team to register a singles point and that came on court three where Kamendova, who lost the first set, regained her composure and dropped just one game in the next two sets to set down Gerritsen 4-6, 6-0, 6-1. The next match to reach completion was at No. 2 singles where Frej Vitalle came out on the winning of a tough three-setter, downing Labeja 7-6 (8-6), 5-7, 6-4 to give the Eagles a 3-0 advantage.
The Colonels got a couple of points back when Poffo bested Strom 6-0, 6-3 at No. 5 and Marcela Jimenez topped
Giovanna Tomiotto 6-1, 6-0 in Tomiotto's Embry-Riddle debut at No. 6. Oscoz tied the team score at 3-3 when she held off Marova in three sets, 7-6 (7-2), 6-7 (7-2), 6-4 at the fourth spot.
With the match tied, all the attention turned to the No. 1 singles court where Chen and Fawzi were embroiled in a three-set battle of their own. Chen won the first set 6-4, but Fawzi was able to hold off the ERAU senior 7-6 (7-0) in the second to force a decisive third set. Riding the momentum of her second set win, Fawzi jumped out to a 5-2 lead and had the match within her grasp, but Chen dug in and registered a hold and a break to make the score 5-4. Her never-say-die attitude and the enthusiastic support of her teammates, helped Chen take the next three games and she clinched the win for ERAU with a 7-5 decision in the third set.
Embry-Riddle will be back in action at 2 p.m. on Friday when the team travels to Lakeland to take on NCAA II No. 12 Florida Southern.
