DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Embry-Riddle women's tennis team (2-9) came out on the wrong end of a 5-4 battle on Thursday, falling to Florida Tech (12-7) 5-4 at the Crotty Tennis Complex.
 
The day's play started with the Panthers going ahead of the Eagles following doubles. ERAU's Maria Turrillo and Georgina Wood made quick work of Larissa Kiyoku, blanking the FIT pair 8-0. The Panthers were able to bounce back, however, as Alahna Reto and Paloma Vela held off Kathryn Bock and Lydia Carter 8-6 at No. 2 doubles, and Merritt Rabson and Erin Egoroff topped Maud Mrad and Alexis Marshall by the same score at the top spot, making it 2-1 in favor of the visitors.
 
The first singles point went to FIT's Stuckey who downed Bock 6-1, 6-4 at No. 5 singles, but the next point went to Turrillo, the Eagles' third flight player, who tallied ERAU's second point with her 6-2, 6-0 defeat of Kayla Hergott.
 
Reto widend the Panther gap with a 6-2, 6-0 win over Wood on court two, and Maria Chun secured the FIT victory by besting Ana Gonzalez-Hoy 6-2, 6-2 at the sixth spot.
 
The last two matches to reach completion both went the Eagles' way. At the fifth spot, Marshall turned back Mariana Castaneiras 6-2, 6-0. At the No. 1 position, Mrad dropped the first set 6-4 against Egoroff, but the graduate transfer fought back to take the second 6-4, and won the tiebreaker 10-6 to cap the Eagles' scoring.
 
The Eagles will take on another Sunshine State Conference foe on Sunday when they host Palm Beach Atlantic at the Crotty Tennis Complex. Match time is 1 p.m.