Mercer University
East Tennessee State
Mercer Women's Tennis Edged by ETSU in SoCon Opener, 4-3
3/12/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
MACON, Ga. – The Mercer University women's tennis team dropped just its second match in last seven outings on Saturday, narrowly falling against ETSU by a final of 4-3. The result was a vast improvement on last season's 7-0 loss to the Buccaneers.
ETSU, ranked No. 73 in the country earlier this season, started strong by taking the doubles' point to go on top 1-0 early. The Buccaneers won at all three positions. The Bears put up the most resistance at the No. 1 spot, as Katia Stavroulaki and Grace Korta lost by a final of 6-4.
Mercer and ETSU split the singles portion of the match, with each side taking three matches. The Bears won in dramatic fashion at the No. 1, 2 and 3 spots, pulling all three out in third set tiebreakers. Stavroulaki won at No.1 by a score of 6-3, 2-6, 7-6. Xandra Fougner and Korta both dropped their first sets at No. 2 and 3, respectively. Both players rallied to take the second set 6-4 and finished with 7-6 scores in the decisive sets to win.
The Orange and Black were unable to win at No. 4, 5 and 6, coming up just short of handing ETSU its second loss of the season. All three matches ended in straight sets.
Next up, Mercer is back in action on Saturday, March 19, as the Bears host Furman for a SoCon showdown at 1 p.m.
ETSU 4, Mercer 3
March 12, 2016 | Macon, Ga.| LeRoy Peddy Tennis Center
Singles
1. Katia Stavroulaki (MER) def. Lyn Yee Choo (ETSU) 6-3, 2-6, 7-6
2. Xandra Fougner (MER) def. Regina Nychytailova (ETSU) 6-7, 6-4, 7-6
3. Grace Korta (MER) def. Ioanna Markesini (ETSU) 1-6, 6-4, 7-6
4. Marina Espana (ETSU) def. Liza Klyachkin (MER) 6-1, 6-1
5. Melissa Esguerra (ETSU) def. Haley Powell (MER) 6-1, 6-0
6. Ana Gerbasi (ETSU) def. Roxy Bartz (MER) 6-3, 6-3
Doubles
1. Lyn Yee Choo/Ana Gerbasi (ETSU) def. Katia Stavroulaki/Grace Korta (MER) 6-4
2. Marina Espana/Ioanna Markesini (ETSU) def. Haley Powell/Liza Klyachkin (MER) 6-0
3. Regina Nychytailova/Melissa Esguerra (ETSU) def. Xandra Fougner/Roxy Bartz (MER) 6-2
Match Notes:
ETSU 12-1
Mercer 8-8
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (4,5,6,1,2,3)
Players Mentioned
